Elk Grove Village could condemn retail building for business park gateway
Elk Grove Village officials have threatened to condemn a retail property at a major gateway to town that they say is holding up their redevelopment of the corridor.
The village board formally authorized acquisition of the corner property at 1700-1706 Oakton St. by eminent domain nearly a year ago. But since then, village officials have gone back and forth with the property owner in hopes of agreeing to a voluntary sale price.
After four different offers, village officials say they're now at an impasse. Last week, village trustees passed a new ordinance directing their attorney to go to court if the property owner doesn't agree to their most recent offer.
"My hope is the owner wants to work with us again and resolve this and be done," Mayor Craig Johnson said of the owner of the retail strip building that contains EJ Pierogi, All Auto Clinic and Oakton Oil Change. "If not, then we'll let the court decide."
The owner did not respond to requests for comment.
Elk Grove Village officials want to acquire the 40,000-square-foot lot on the northwest corner of Oakton Street and Busse Road so they can tear down the retail building and create a gateway to the area, complete with village signage, landscaping, utility connections and stormwater storage.
Behind the existing building, a $25 million redevelopment of the former Elk Grove Hotel site has already begun. The village bought the site in 2018 for $5.6 million and last year agreed to sell parcels back to a developer, who plans to build two hotels and a restaurant there.
First up is construction of a three-story, 105-room Country Inn & Suites starting this year, then a restaurant or commercial outlot building, and finally a four-story, 96-room Tru by Hilton hotel.
Across the street, village officials are also eyeing higher-end hospitality uses after buying a Motel 6 there last year for $5.3 million.
Johnson sees the corner as a key entryway to the village's massive 6-square-mile industrial park, which now includes the $1 billion, 85-acre Elk Grove Technology Park just down the block.
Meanwhile, the village ordinance authorizing use of eminent domain for acquisition states that the current property was "found to have blighting conditions which impede redevelopment of the property and surrounding properties."
"I'm the last one who wanted to condemn ... but we've been more than fair," said Johnson, adding that the village's offers were above appraisals. "We've done everything we could."
The possible condemnation was news to Ewa Swigon, who has leased space in the building for her Polish restaurant, EJ Pierogi, since 2013. While she said she was aware her landlord and the village were negotiating, she knew they didn't come to an agreement, and for months, she didn't hear anything.
"Last year, he says to me we can stay. I don't think about it because I think we can stay forever again," said Swigon, who has three years left on her lease.
Johnson said the village would work with the existing businesses to find new locations.