Hoffman Estates plan commission rejects rezoning request for possible data center

Hoffman Estates plan commissioners voted 4-2 Wednesday to recommend against rezoning the 186-acre Plum Farms property to manufacturing for a possible data center proposal.

The vote was called after 46 members of the public unanimously urged rejection of the request for an unspecified development by landowner Karis Critical of Florida, which saw a data center proposal in Naperville rejected in January.

The recommendation goes to the village board for a binding decision, but a specific date was not immediately scheduled. The earliest possible meeting is 7 p.m. Monday, June 15.

Attorney Matt Norton represented the landowner, doing business as H.E. Holdings LLC, and pointed out the property at the northwest corner of Higgins Road and Route 59 has remained undeveloped under its current residential and retail zoning.

“There has been lukewarm interest in the market for the permitted uses,” he said.

The rezoning request aimed to attract outside developers. It suggested that manufacturing zoning could lead to various new industrial uses.

“We don’t have a purchase contract right now,” Norton said. “We don’t have a letter of intent right now.”

Speakers opposed to the rezoning urged the board’s rejection of the proposal without knowing what would go there. They complained a data center would create environmental issues.

Most speakers were from Hoffman Estates, South Barrington or Barrington Hills. But independent gubernatorial candidate Collin Corbett of Palatine, Democratic state Rep. Nabeela Syed of Inverness and Democratic candidate for state representative Maria Peterson of North Barrington were also drawn by the chorus of discontent.

South Barrington Village President Paula McCombie said her village and Hoffman Estates have had a long history of understanding that what happens in one community affects the other. She found the rezoning request out of sync with their mutual development of retail uses in that area.

“I’m not a resident of Hoffman Estates but we should be strategic partners,” McCombie said.

Plan Commissioner Lenard Henderson and Chairperson Rajkumari Chhatwani were the two members who voted to recommend the rezoning. Members of the audience were upset when they declined to explain their votes.