Coffee roaster bringing hometown flavor to Mount Prospect

Whether permitting, Melissa Heydon delivers her coffee on her bike. Now, thanks to assistance from the village of Mount Prospect, she could soon be handing it to customers over a counter.

The Mount Prospect village board on Tuesday decided to help Heydon Coffee Roasters by declaring it eligible for $76,000 in tax increment financing from the downtown TIF district.

Heydon plans to open a small-batch, specialty coffee bean roastery in a vacant building at 500 E. Northwest Hwy.

Built in the 1960s, the red brick building has housed a photography studio and a luggage shop.

The total project cost is estimated at $271,600, village officials said. The village would reimburse the business following certification of the project’s completion and documents itemizing eligible redevelopment expenses.

Based on sales projections, village officials said, the village would recoup the TIF incentive through new sales tax revenues within four or five years of operation.

“The Roastery and Coffee House will draw new foot traffic to the area, raising the profile of established retail and service based businesses, breathing fresh life into an area of great potential, to create a new ‘destination’ in Mount Prospect,” according to the business’ funding application.

Heydon has worked in account management and taught in both Chicago and London, but coffee has become her hobby and her passion. That led to a home-based business with a strong following in Arlington Heights, Park Ridge and Palatine, as well as Mount Prospect.

Now she plans to perk up a vacant corner with a small coffee house serving brewed specialty coffee, espresso drinks and homemade, small-batch bakery items.

Specialty, high-quality grade, globally imported coffee beans would be roasted on-site, using a custom coffee roaster. Her plan calls for a fall opening.

Village Community Development Director Jason Shallcross said the village’s assistance is in line with what it has rendered for other businesses, including Khepri Kitchen + Coffee on Emerson Street and CoCo & Maple on Northwest Highway.

Village trustees at Tuesday’s meeting expressed excitement about the new business.

“It’s exciting to welcome a business that’s passionate about quality and craftsmanship,” Trustee Vince Dante said.

“I know that you have been looking for a minute for the right space for your business,” Trustee Colleen Saccotelli said. “You’re certainly a hometown favorite. I know my husband and I love it.”

Saccotelli said she sees Heydon in the neighborhood on her bike delivering coffee.

“I do deliver by bike, which has been a wonderful experience in town,” Heydon told the board, “because our town is very bikeable, so it’s great, and it’s really a fun way to get in contact with customers.”

She added, “We’re very excited just to create a new opportunity in town, as well as to expand the footprint of downtown.”

One trustee, however, William Grossi, had a question about the small-batch roasting and was assured it would only be 10 pounds at a time.

“I want to be clear about this,” Grossi said, referring to the village’s problems with Prestige Feed Products, “because we’ve had other issues with smells in the village.”

Dante, however, quipped, the smells in the neighborhood are likely to improve, considering she would be across from an automotive shop.