Chicagoland Speedway has a warehouse plan

Chicagoland Speedway has a plan to add warehouses to its site but not on the racetrack, Joliet official said.

About 82 acres now used for overflow parking would be sold for warehouse development, the city said in a news release issued Monday.

The news release was put out after speculation that the Chicagoland Speedway racetrack would be converted to warehouse space.

That's not in the plan, Director of Community Development Kendall Jackson said.

"There's no encroachment of the racetrack property or any buildings at the racetrack," Jackson said. "It's not replacing the racetrack."

The land under consideration is open land, he said.

Chicagoland Speedway uses unpaved, open land for parking.

The entire Chicagoland Speedway site is 423 acres, according to the city news release.

The proposed warehouse project would not cross into Chicagoland Speedway or Route 66 Raceway, which are part of the same complex, Jackson said.

"It's all self-contained to the east of the racetrack," Jackson said.

Chicagoland Speedway representatives were not available for comment.

The plan went to the Plan Commission for review last month but was tabled until July at the applicant's request, Jackson said.

The proposal has attracted attention in light of Chicagoland Speedway's announcement on Saturday that it will not host NASCAR races this summer due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The applicant is Hillwood Investment Properties, which is asking the city to approve a subdivision of 82.3 acres of land it would purchase from Chicagoland Speedway, the news release said.

"Chicagoland Speedway, LLC would continue to own the remaining balance of racetrack property and no portion of the racing oval would be impacted," the release said.

Hillwood has developed other warehouse property on the south end of Joliet, where Chicagoland Speedway is located, including one of the fulfillment centers used by Amazon. The company at one time proposed a warehouse plan for the crossing of Interstates 55 and 80, which was rejected as Joliet pursued the mixed-use project that since has been undertaken by Cullinan Properties.