Long-vacant Rolling Meadows Dominick's may have a buyer

A potential buyer has surfaced for the Rolling Meadows shopping center with the long-vacant Dominick's store on Kirchoff Road, say city officials.

The city, which is involved because almost $1 million in tax increment financing money will be available at the end of the year to aid the project, expects to hear more later this month after the interested business has completed studies, City Manager Sarah Phillips said Tuesday.

A successful Chicago area business is considering the property for its own use and would probably rent some of it, said Mayor Ken Nelson. If that company purchases the property, Nelson expects to see a major rehabilitation rather than total demolition.

City officials consider the project very important, said the mayor.

"It's a piece of property in our downtown that has been vacant for a long time and is an eyesore," he said.

In the late 1980s, the city spent $3.2 million in TIF money on redeveloping the shopping center, which is on the south side of Kirchoff Road just east of Meadow Drive. The grocery store closed in 2004, and in 2006 a housing development was proposed but never built. The property is almost vacant and is in receivership, said Nelson.

Aldermen have said they prefer commercial development on the site because of the taxes that would be generated and the services that residences require.

The site is about 11 acres, and the stores total 120,000 square feet, she said.

The TIF money can be spent on anything related to developing the site from landscaping to infrastructure and would be negotiated with any purchaser, said Phillips.

In a TIF district, additional taxes from property that is redeveloped go to the city to use to help encourage redevelopment by paying for expenses like infrastructure improvements. Otherwise, the tax money would go to various taxing bodies, such as schools.