Buffalo Grove bowling alley wants to add a dance club
It's an age-old problem. There seems to be nothing for the kids in Buffalo Grove to do.
The latest solution offered Tuesday to the Buffalo Grove village board came from Bill Feldgreber, who runs eSkape, the family entertainment complex in the Town Center mall.
Feldgreber is proposing to carve out 6 percent of eSkape's space, which is mostly devoted to bowling lanes, and provide dancing on Friday and Saturday nights. Saturday night would be devoted to youths 17 and older, Friday night to the 21-and-older crowd.
On Monday, the village board voted to give him a public hearing, but trustees indicated approval will be anything but a waltz for Feldgreber.
For one thing, the village will need to modify the zoning for eSkape to allow it.
But a bigger hurdle will be philosophical.
Trustee Jeffrey Braiman summed up his concerns by recalling his experience as an attorney for the owner of a Des Plaines dance club, The Hype. Within weeks of getting approval (in 1995), Des Plaines neighbors began voicing complaints. Attempts to address those concerns failed to improve the situation.
"They had gang problems. They had drug problems. There were batteries. It was a mess. Eventually my client chose to walk away from it," Braiman said. "You're going to have a real hard time convincing me."
He warned that "police are going to be overwhelmed" and questioned the impact on parking at the Town Center and surrounding condominiums.
Both Police Chief Steve Balinski and Trustee DeAnn Glover were concerned because the club has a potential occupancy of more than 320. Glover asked what would prevent someone from leaving the club and getting a drink at eSkape's bar.
Feldgreber said there would be a no-alcohol policy in the dance area on the night when youths between 17 and 21 would be admitted. He added that wrist bands would be issued, making it easier to monitor traffic between the dance area and the rest of eSkape. He said there would also be restrictions on the way drinks would be served to protect minors.
The only trustee who was gung ho over the proposal was Lisa Stone, who called it "a much needed activity." She downplayed concerns, noting that she saw plenty of activity at the Beer Tent during Buffalo Grove Days when there were minors at the festival.
But Glover replied that plenty of police were around there to see that things didn't get out of hand.
Stone persisted, however, saying that not only was dancing "a wonderful activity," but that her children will be dancing there. She added that kids need something to do. "They hang out at City Park (in Lincolnshire) because they don't know what else to do.
"This is something we should move fast on."