Schaumburg seeing new activity in old buildings

While it's still too early to interpret exactly what it means to the overall economy, Schaumburg is experiencing a sharp increase in the use of long-vacant business properties.

On Tuesday night alone, Schaumburg trustees approved several proposals for new businesses or expansions in existing buildings.

Schaumburg Community Development Director Christopher Huff said textbook business philosophy states that when economies experience recovery, existing underutilized buildings are the first places to see new activity.

But whether the current activity is a true sign of recovery or just a false start is something that can only be known for sure in retrospect, he said.

"My crystal ball is broken right now," Huff said.

Among Tuesday's approvals was for the LA Boxing training center to fill the vacant space next to the Streets of Woodfield movie theaters formerly used by the restaurants Asiago and Dick Clark's AB Diner.

Huff said it's been three years since Asiago closed.

The Spring Valley Veterinary Clinic at 109 S. Roselle Road also received permission to incorporate an additional 50-by-30-foot space in its building into its business. This space may have once housed a second tenant but has been used more recently simply for storage, Huff said.

Trustees Tuesday also reauthorized a Class 6B property tax incentive for Cobalt Industrial REIT II to move into 550 Albion Ave.

The village and Cook County had previously granted the tax break to the vacant building under the provision of special circumstances, but were recently able to change to the other possible provision of a two-year vacancy in the building, Huff said.

About 20 to 25 industrial buildings in Schaumburg have received the 6B tax break -- an incentive that lasts 12 years before normal property tax levels return.

But officials only recently approved their first 7B tax break - for office buildings - for the 11-story former IBM building at 231 Martingale Road.

Career Education Corp., currently of Hoffman Estates, is expected to move 1,100 employees into the building next spring. The 300,000-square-foot structure is the only fully vacant office building in the village.