Built-out Schaumburg to consider ending developer impact fees for growth of road capacity
Growth in Schaumburg has reached a point where officials are questioning whether the village still needs to charge developers for additional road capacity.
On Tuesday night, trustees will consider ending the road improvement impact fee, which developers have been paying since the 1970s, and disbanding the committee that recommends how the revenue is spent.
Schaumburg Mayor Tom Dailly sees it as a key moment in the 70-year history of Illinois’ second-largest hub of economic activity.
“It’s showing that Schaumburg is just about built out everywhere,” he said.
Transportation Director Sidney Kenyon recommends the remaining $3.1 million in the fund go toward the planned realignment of Thoreau Drive north of the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel to better accommodate a new entertainment district.
During the heyday of the village’s growth, the impact fee was imposed on developers for projects requiring new or wider roads and expanded intersections. But the last comprehensive road improvement plan (CRIP) for which it was eligible was approved in May 2019.
Kenyon said as the number of eligible projects in the village has declined, it no longer makes sense to keep imposing the fees on new development.
“Ending the program would support Schaumburg’s positive business environment by reducing development costs while allowing the village to pursue road improvements that reflect current community needs,” he added.
The fee didn’t apply to the internal roads for Elmhurst-based Nitti Group’s more recent residential subdivisions of Summit Grove and on the former Loeber Farm near Rolling Meadows, Dailly said.
Furthermore, the road system within the Veridian redevelopment of the former Motorola campus ― including the public Progress Parkway ― was the product of direct negotiations with developer UrbanStreet Group and partly funded by a tax increment financing (TIF) district, he added.
Dailly expects Schaumburg trustees will find little reason to debate village staff’s recommendation to end the fee.
“The board understands there’s not a need for it,” he said.
epeterson@dailyherald.com