How a water tower could bring new business to Grayslake
As Grayslake continues to seek a boost to its local economy, officials say a new water tower could be the catalyst to attracting businesses to what's believed to be one of the largest undeveloped chunks of land in Lake County.
Village Manager Mike Ellis addressed the idea of a new water tower at a recent meeting of Grayslake's advisory Economic Development Commission.
Such a tower could serve potential office, retail and industrial development on 641 acres owned by Skokie-based Alter Group near Peterson and Alleghany roads, plus 1,500 adjacent acres known as Central Range, Ellis said. A new tower on Grayslake's southern end also would provide sufficient water storage in the area and allow the pressure for the village's entire system to remain high, he added.
"We have to be able to provide them with water, including fire protection water flow, and we have to do that in a way that does not (burden) the pressure in our existing system," Ellis said.
It's possible development could begin on the mammoth sites first, with the water tower constructed later, Ellis said. The village could work with a developer "to find a way to collect the money," he added.
Preliminary estimates indicate a 1.5 million-gallon tower could cost $11 million, officials said.
"The good news is, we've spent the last 20 years building a (water) system that's pretty robust," Ellis said. "It's pretty simple to extend the water mains down there."
Grayslake Business Partnership managing director Michael Stewart said water allocation and pressure are issues for pharmaceutical companies that are exploring whether to consider building facilities on the site. The group Stewart heads is a nonprofit, public-private initiative seeking to lure new businesses to Grayslake.
Grayslake Economic Development Commission member Steve Lawrence raised the idea of the village paying for the tower to serve Alter's 641 acres and the 1,500-acre Central Range as Grayslake competes for major business development.
"I'm not one to sit here and say, 'Let's spend $11 million and put the village in debt,' but, man, it's a tough decision not to do it, too," Lawrence said during the Oct. 13 session.
Although the Alter site was annexed by Grayslake in 2009, there are no specific plans before the village for the 641 acres. Similarly, no formal proposals are have been made regarding the nearby 1,500-acre Central Range.
Meanwhile, commission members recommended against renewing the contract of a consulting firm to help the village recruit new retail businesses. Stewart worked last year with Fort Worth, Texas-based Buxton Co., which is known for customer analytics.
Buxton had proposed a $38,500 package for the village to land 10 retail matches and have access to the company's support services. Buxton also pitched a $25,000 package that included the company's proprietary, online-based analytics platform that lets towns demonstrate retail potential in an effort to lure new businesses.
Stewart said the village would be better served spending $3,000 to $5,000 on software to generate retail reports similar to what the consultant provided. He said it was worthwhile to hire Buxton last year so Grayslake could hit the ground running in its first significant effort at retail recruitment.
"I just don't think the new scope of (retail recruitment) work, especially from a pricing structure, makes any sense for year two," Stewart said of Buxton's proposals.