Schaumburg dedicates 90 North Park at heart of Veridian development
Schaumburg’s 12-acre 90 North Park in the heart of the redeveloping former Motorola campus made the transition from passive to active recreation this weekend with an event demonstrating the potential for both to a large group of visitors.
“I think we had a really good turnout,” said Schaumburg Landscape & Design Planner Todd Wenger, who’s been deeply involved with the development of the park. “It’s a big space to fill up but I feel there were a lot of people who showed up there, maybe after dinner. We’ll probably consider doing this again.”
People gathered Saturday to try out the amenities of the park like the hammock grove, play games and enjoy live music, food trucks, beer, wine and a light show by drones after sunset.
“The weather was fabulous, which just made the whole event,” said Mayor Tom Dailly, who kicked off the event with the mid-afternoon ribbon-cutting.
Though the park’s second phase is about a year from completion, Dailly said there was a steady flow of visitors throughout the day.
Schaumburg is also applying for an Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grant of up to $500,000 from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for additional amenities.
Wenger said a pedestrian bridge over Meacham Road to an entertainment district on the east side is also in the works to make the park more accessible.
The 225-acre Veridian development is already home to residents of the Element at Veridian apartment building and D.R. Horton’s Northgate at Veridian rowhome community to the west.
The first apartment residents of the Main Street-like, 30-acre development of The District at Veridian to the east are expected to move in during 2027.
Bob Burk, managing partner of UrbanStreet Group which is the master developer of Veridian, said he’s beyond impressed with what the village has done with the park.
“Their goal is to have a much more events-oriented space,” Burk said. “It also becomes a regional attraction for people outside our community. It’s another tangible way that we’re partnering with the village.”
What visitors will see at the park in a year include some completed water features and a tilted lawn zone. But under consideration for the more distant future are a concession area, restrooms and permanent playing courts for outdoor games.
From the start of its planning, Schaumburg officials referred to the project as an urban-style park along the lines of Chicago’s Millennium Park.
Funding of the park’s $14 million development so far has come exclusively from the area's tax-increment financing (TIF) district.
Such funding mechanisms work by freezing the property taxes local governments receive at the level of the first year. As improving properties' values and taxes rise, the incremental increase goes to a village-held fund to pay for public improvements for up to 23 years.