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DHL changes location of proposed 'Innovation Center' in Rosemont

Global logistics firm DHL still plans to open its first North American "Innovation Center" in Rosemont, but is changing its proposed location from a mixed-use district in development to a site closer to village hall, officials said Wednesday.

Village officials announced last May that DHL's two-story, 18,000-square-foot office building would round out the $80 million, 16-acre The Pearl District development south of Balmoral Avenue and west of the Tri-State Tollway.

But Mayor Brad Stephens said Wednesday that ground-related issues at that location have DHL instead looking to a vacant 1.4-acre site on the northeast corner of Higgins Road and Shafer Court, just east of the Tri-State.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has not yet issued a formal No Further Remediation letter for DHL's proposed site in The Pearl District. As a result, DHL officials didn't want to be on the chain of title for the property, Stephens said.

But company brass wants to stay in Rosemont, Stephens said, after its extensive search for a U.S. location brought them to the village because of its proximity to O'Hare International Airport. That led DHL to the vacant site on Higgins, owned by Orix Real Estate.

DHL officials didn't respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Their facility is expected to include exhibit space showcasing company products and projects in development, offices and meeting rooms. It would employ 25 people. The company opened its first Innovation Center in 2007 at its headquarters in Bonn, Germany, followed by a second one in Singapore in 2015 to serve its Asia Pacific market.

A developer plans to purchase the vacant land in Rosemont and lease to DHL, but it isn't a done deal. Equity Office, owner of the neighboring 11-story office building, has some say on what gets developed next door, under terms of a 2006 deal when Equity purchased its building from Orix.

An early draft of Rosemont's Wednesday village board meeting agenda included a real estate development and tax increment financing assistance agreement for the prospective developer, but it was pulled, Stephens said.

There are slight changes in the design of DHL's building, though the overall size is expected to remain the same, the mayor said. The project is expected to get a hearing before the Rosemont zoning board of appeals next month, before coming to the village board for final approvals.

DHL to open 'Innovation Center' in Rosemont

A sketch shows the 2-story, 18,000-square-foot DHL Innovation Center originally planned for The Pearl District in Rosemont. Courtesy of Village of Rosemont
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