FOX RIVER GROVE – An expansion of Fox River Grove’s downtown tax increment financing district was approved at Thursday night’s Village Board meeting, allowing the large-scale redevelopment proposal for the area to move forward.
The four ordinances unanimously approved at the meeting closed the current downtown TIF district, which was established in 2012, and opened a new one, which stretches from Opartny Drive toward the river and south of Route 14.
The expansion was part of a memorandum of understanding between the village and Northbrook-based Gart Partners, a developer planning the $250 million, four-phase redevelopment project.
“The adoption of the TIF ordinance will help provide tax increment funding, support for land acquisition and infrastructure that is necessary to execute the downtown redevelopment,” Gart Partners principal Jordan Glazov said. “We’re very happy about that, and we’re working diligently to put our final plans in place.”
The expansion was first brought to the public in January and was discussed at a public hearing in August.
Village Administrator Derek Soderholm said Gart Partners covered the costs for the consultant who revised the TIF, which he estimated at about $25,000.
The next step in the project will require the village and developer to come to a redevelopment agreement that will establish conditions for the project, potentially including a time frame and a establishment of financial incentives and responsibilities.
Glazov said the village’s attorney is in the process of writing the first draft of that agreement.
The developer still is hopeful it can meet its spring 2016 target date to begin work on the first phase of the project, which includes three five-story buildings to house 300 apartment units on the east side of Route 14.
Glazov said the group hopes to have the development agreement in place by December and finalize a building permit for the first phase by March.
“Very seldom in the development process do you meet all your target dates, but we’ve been moving ahead expeditiously so far,” Glazov said.