New plans for infamous DuPage County land

It's one of the most infamous empty parcels in DuPage County, but if developers have their way it could become one of the most densely populated.

The property is an 82-acre swath of land between Butterfield Road and 16th Street that was voluntarily de-annexed from Oakbrook Terrace by owner Robert Krilich in 2007 after years sparring over development proposals with city officials.

At one time it was going to be home to the ambitious Royce Renaissance development. But that residential and commercial project evaporated when Krilich was imprisoned in 1995 for rigging a hole-in-one contest to pay off a bribe to then-Oakbrook Terrace Mayor Richard Sarallo's son.

In the meantime, several projects were hinted at, but never took shape - until now.

Krilich's team has submitted a massive development project that includes more than 2,000 residential units, thousands of square feet of commercial space and buildings that could top out at nearly 200 feet or more.

"I think it's the right project for DuPage County and the right project for everybody out there," Krilich said from his home in Florida.

The problem is, just about everybody out there disagrees with him.

Oakbrook Terrace officials and neighbors of the proposed project plan to fight the proposal at Thursday's county zoning board of appeals meeting. It will be the first time anyone's had a chance to publicly discuss the plan since it was submitted weeks ago.

"How can anybody approve this kind of project?" said Oakbrook Terrace Mayor Thomas Mazaika. "So many years of dealing with Mr. Krilich and his odd behavior where he keeps throwing things at you in lawsuits and litigation, it's almost to the point of saying what's going to be done is going to be done."

Among the many objections the city has against the project is the fact that the only access to the development would be from busy Butterfield Road. And Krilich's team is seeking variances that would allow them to build almost all the way up to the lot line. That would make exiting the property dangerous, the critics said.

"It is really inappropriate," said Oakbrook Terrace attorney Barbara Gosselar. "And not just in terms of roadways."

Gosselar is also quick to point out the density disparity between what Oakbrook Terrace would allow with seven residential units to an acre versus the project's requested 20 units per acre.

County board members refused to comment on the project ahead of the appeals board hearing, but some expressed concern about the scope of the project and expected it to be tamed before it got to their desks.

For his part, Krilich believes it's good to go as is.

"We carefully studied all the environmental problems, engineering problems and market problems, and this will work and it will be successful for everyone out there as similar projects have worked in Hinsdale and other places that combine residential living and retail," he said. "Besides other villages in the area think it's great."

Well, sort of. Officials in neighboring Villa Park aren't doing cartwheels or holding their noses. They've sent a letter to the county declaring their neutrality until after the hearings.

"It's a beautiful project and we've got top people working on it," Krilich said.

Mazaika believes otherwise.

"All this time we've been waiting for a development to come forward, and it would be really sad if it gets developed outside the city and especially in a way that we know is not productive to the area," he said.