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Controversial Buffalo Grove downtown plan gone, but tensions remain

Chuck Malk has walked away from his plans to redevelop the Buffalo Grove Golf Club and village campus into a downtown featuring high-rise condominiums, entertainment venues, retail and office buildings, and dozens of acres of open space.

But the developer's proposal has left behind a mess - including a fractured village board and apprehensive neighbors - just in time for a contentious election season.

On Monday night, the village board voted to drop a possible advisory referendum on the downtown plan, choosing instead to pass a resolution accepting the letter of withdrawal by Malk's firm, CRM Properties, and cancel upcoming planning and zoning commission meetings on the subject.

The resolution states the village will seek public input "from all affected stakeholders" should a similar proposal arise, and indicates officials will update the town's comprehensive plan to include economic development along the Lake-Cook Road, Dundee Road, Route 83 and Milwaukee Road corridors.

Beneath the unanimity of the vote Monday, however, was a layer of bad feelings within the board itself, as well as lingering mistrust among residents who opposed the proposal.

Trustee Beverly Sussman, who filed Monday to challenge Village President Jeffrey Braiman in the April 7 election, questioned why she was excluded from the group of elected officials who acted to have the resolution - first suggested by local activist Rob Sherman - placed on the meeting's agenda.

"To me, it's like I'm behind the door," she said.

Sussman also tangled with Trustee Jeffrey Berman and other board members, whom she accused of making "campaign speeches" during the board meeting.

"If you're going to pop up in the press and make ridiculous accusations against people who are members of this board and suggest that we are misleading the public, I will respond in a public forum," Berman said.

Berman later criticized Trustee Mike Terson over a Facebook post in which, according to Berman, he lamented the death of the CRM proposal.

Terson disputed the characterization, saying his post only suggested that the village did not review the proposal long enough to have a clear understanding of its feasibility.

"Reading is a skill. And I would encourage Trustee Berman to go back and read things that I have posted," Terson said. "What you initially said, Trustee Berman, I did not say."

The sniping between trustees comes as a potentially tough campaign season looms for board incumbents. Besides Sussman's effort to unseat Braiman, incumbent trustees Berman, Terson and Steve Trilling are facing challenges from residents Dave Weidenfeld and Dan Petersen. More candidates could enter the field before next week's filing deadline for April's elections.

Despite his tense exchanges with fellow board members Monday, Berman reserved his harshest words for CRM.

"It took its proverbial bat and ball and went home because the board would not accede to their ultimatum that the village make a commitment to provide at least $100 million in public financing for the project," he said.

Berman said he believes the village ultimately would have to issue as much as $160 million in bonds to help finance the $376 million project. The village has issued only about $135 million in bonded debt in its existence, he said.

"The CRM proposal would require us to issue more bonds than we have issued in the entire history of this village," Berman added.

Braiman said Malk didn't suggest a financial contribution from the village until recently, about two years after he first brought the proposal to village leaders.

"It was apparent after the conversations with each of the trustees that the vast majority of the board had no desire to consider public financing of this magnitude," Braiman said.

For Braiman, the outcome vindicates how the board approached Malk's proposal.

"Over the past two-plus years, I have repeatedly pronounced that this was a process, a journey, and one that had both concerns and potential benefits to the village," he said. "It was also one which could be derailed for any number of reasons. Others have said the same thing. While some out there believe that this was a done deal, I advised, as did others, that it was not."

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Jeffrey Braiman
Beverly Sussman
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