Joliet committee gives OK to tax incentives

JOLIET – A Joliet City Council committee agreed Friday to recommend a tax incentive package worth an estimated $188,000 for a Cadence Premier Logistics project that includes a corporate office and indoor soccer field.

Cadence Premier plans to relocate operations from Alsip.

The project also includes warehouse, light assembly and truck service operations.

Cadence is one of several projects planned for the Laraway Crossings Business Park along Route 53, which has become increasingly congested with truck traffic.

Another 1 million-square-foot warehouse is planned next to the Cadence operation by Hillwood, a Texas-based developer of logistics property. The developer also has been seeking tax incentives, but put the request on hold until a user for its building is identified.

The incentives for Cadence passed by a 2-0 vote with one member absent from the meeting of the Economic Development Committee.

Committee Chairman Larry Hug said the Cadence project should not add much truck traffic to the area.

“This is not a destination point creating a lot of new truck traffic for deliveries,” Hug said to Cadence representatives. “Most of what you do is service the truck traffic that is already here.”

The incentives

The Cadence plan includes a 124,000-square-foot warehouse that could be expanded some day by 94,500 square feet.

The tax incentives, which likely will go to the full City Council for a vote on Aug. 4., include a five-year, 50 percent abatement on property taxes estimated to be worth $28,000 a year. The city also would waive impact fees estimated at $48,000.

The property tax abatement was sought only for the warehouse and corporate office building. It will not apply to a truck fueling center, convenience store and parking lot.

Joliet-based attorney Michael Hansen, representing Cadence, said the company plans to add 92 jobs over three years at the warehouse and corporate building, which will include light assembly operations.

Hansen said the company hopes to close on the Joliet property in August. He said the Joliet site “is not a done deal.” Cadence is looking at two other sites in Illinois and one in northwest Indiana, he said.

Indoor soccer

The project will include the unique feature of an indoor soccer field. Hansen said one of the company’s owners is a former professional soccer player from Germany, and the soccer field is available for employees’ use.

The soccer field also will be made available to Joliet school-age soccer players, Hansen said.

The project poses the possibility of two indoor soccer fields on the south end of Joliet. The Joliet Park District has plans to build an indoor soccer field at Nowell Park, which is at Route 53 and Doris Avenue. The Laraway Crossings Business Park is at Laraway Road.

Hansen said Cadence also is requesting property tax abatements from Will County, the Joliet Township High School District and the Laraway School District.

The Hillwood incentive request was put on hold at city staff’s suggestion, said James Haller, the city’s director of community and economic development. Haller said Hillwood has not identified a user for the building yet, and staff suggested that the incentive request should come from the future owner.