Rolling Meadows may give Gallagher $35 million incentive
Insurance broker Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. could receive up to $35 million from a tax increment financing district that Rolling Meadows may create to sweeten the deal as the business moves back to the city, up $5 million from previous negotiations.
Gallagher, the fourth-largest commercial insurance broker in the country, plans to move its headquarters from Itasca to 2850 Golf Road into the west tower of the Meadows Corporate Center, which it purchased last year.
The additional $5 million was brought up during Tuesday night's committee of the whole meeting and pegged to cover the costs of purchasing more land and building an additional 60,000-square-foot building as the company continues to expand.
Eventually Gallagher will become one of the city's largest employers, with as many as 2,200 employees on the Rolling Meadows site, said Cara Richardson, vice president of sourcing and procurement.
"Our commitment is to make Rolling Meadows our corporate home and make it a place we can grow," Richardson said.
Gallager was a tenant of the same center for about 15 years before moving to Itasca in 1991.
"Gallagher isn't new to your community. We're coming back to your community. It's a very conscious decision," Richardson said.
Gallagher will get TIF money only after property taxes there rise, said Brian Baugh, an attorney with Storino, Ramello & Durkin who is handling negotiations for the city. The city and Gallagher so far have agreed to a shortened TIF district length of 15 years instead of the regular 23. In a TIF district, property taxes from an area that go to local governments are capped at a certain point, and any taxes collected above that point go back into development.
There are still several steps that Rolling Meadows must take before setting up the TIF district, including a number of public hearings about the topic. Negotiations for final terms of the deal are still underway.
The city may also have to pay to construct a road that will provide additional points of access and space for emergency vehicles, City Manager Barry Krumstok said, and that could cost $500,000 to $1 million.
Some aldermen said they still have concerns about the money involved with the project.
"The business community gets upset with government when they feel we're in their way. However, when the shoe is on the other foot they seem to be more than happy to come forward and see what government can do for them," Alderman Len Prejna said. "I like the idea of the project and what it will do, but I still think it's a very rich package."
Richardson said the large amount of money is necessary to help pay for upgrades to the building.
"It's an expensive rehab," Richardson said.