Setbacks delay opening of Palatine's new Harley dealership

It's been a series of bad breaks for Lone Star-Cardinal Motorcycle Ventures, the developer behind the new and improved City Limits Harley-Davidson dealership in Palatine.

And while construction is now well underway, the completion deadline for the complex at 2009-2015 N. Rand Road has been pushed back another four months to July 31.

“The good news is that we have been successful in dealing with most of the issues that have delayed construction and are currently charging full steam ahead towards completion,” dealership attorney Stephen Ryd wrote in a letter to Palatine officials.

In 2009, to help address extraordinary construction costs caused by poor soil on the property, the village granted its first deadline extension to the project.

Then there was litigation involving the contractor and subcontractors, and owner Ozzie Giglio's unexpected extended military redeployment to Afghanistan.

On top of the depressed economic conditions that have pummeled the entire construction industry, materials and other costs also have come in $900,000 higher than originally budgeted.

The project's construction manager now anticipates the building could be ready for occupancy by mid-May, according to Ryd.

Recognizing the importance of meeting the new deadline, City Limits Harley has agreed to forgo $25,000 of tax increment financing money for each month it's not open after the July 31 deadline.

To cover site preparation costs, Palatine officials agreed to provide up to $250,000 in TIF assistance to be paid upon the dealership's opening.

Giglio currently operates a smaller City Limits Harley northwest of the future dealership, in addition to Wild Fire Harley-Davidson in Villa Park.

When Palatine officials first approved the relocation in 2007, they predicted the new facility would increase sales tax revenue from the dealership by more than 150 percent.