Group unveils $200 million theater plans

A group of Naperville residents is pulling back the curtain on a large-scale redevelopment proposal centered around a $200 million performing arts center and commuter parking garage.

The proposal by Omnia, a nonprofit group, also would include condos, shops and restaurants and be built near the Fifth Avenue train station.

Members say they'll need the city's help, but can make their dream a reality without any new or increased taxes.

In the works for several years, the proposal has prompted much speculation because supporters have limited their presentations to city leaders and a handful of civic organizations.

Omnia board members Bev Patterson Frier and Rosemary Macko Wisnosky, along with architect Dan Coffey, recently met with the Daily Herald to discuss details of their plan. The acting board also includes Naperville residents Susan Ryan and Ken Packer.

Coffey said there are about 1.3 million people characterized as "theater-going" within a 30-minute drive of downtown Naperville and after extensive research the group is confident such an endeavor would succeed.

"We're trying to be good Naperville citizens ... and say here's a good thing, we think it makes sense," Coffey said. "It's a thing for the region, very much for Naperville. It's in the first-class thinking tradition of Naperville. I think it adds to the cultural life."

The group showed artist renderings of the complex but would not provide them for publication.

Proposed amenities

The Omnia Performing Arts Center would include a 2,500- to 2,700-seat performance hall, 800- to 950-seat second performance space, 150- to 200-seat studio theater, rehearsal space and a possible pre-college performing arts academy.

Coffey said it would be used for performances including films, popular music, drama, concerts, dance, opera and Broadway shows in their second and third run.

While there are many theaters in the suburbs, including a 605-seat concert hall under construction at North Central College, Coffey says those venues are either much larger or smaller than Omnia's, leaving a gap in the market.

Among the concerns of neighboring residents is the height of the development. To allow sets to rise and fall as needed, part of the center would stand as tall as 120 feet.

But Coffey says it still would be shorter than the nearby city water tower, Millennium Carillon and Ss. Peter and Paul Church steeple.

The plan also calls for restaurants, stores and residential units, including 16 houses, 45 to 55 townhouses, and 500 to 600 mid-rise condo units.

Parking would be built for the residential and retail units in addition to 1,720 commuter parking spaces in an underground garage.

Location

Omnia's development would be built on 52 acres at the site of the city's current public works facility, which is being rebuilt on the west side of town.

The land is owned by the city and the Boecker family and is adjacent the Metra station.

Coffey said the site is underutilized and close enough to downtown to share its benefits but not so close it would cause significant congestion.

City planners currently are studying the area to form recommendations about land use, parking and transportation. They will seek input from residents, the plan commission and city council.

Funding

Funding for Omnia's proposal is complex, coming from a variety of sources and relying on the cooperation of the city. However, it will not require any new or increased taxes, according to Coffey.

The project would be built in phases over five years, with developers paying for the retail and residential components.

The performing arts center would be the final piece and be built only if Omnia has raised sufficient funds by then, minimizing risk, Coffey said.

The performing arts center and parking garage would cost about $200 million and organizers say they would need a $20 million endowment to assist with operating costs.

To raise this money, Omnia would ask the city to create a tax increment financing district in which property tax revenue is frozen for up to 23 years. While the property value of the area goes up during that time, the additional tax dollars it generates - estimated at $120 million - would go toward development. Another $50 million would come from land sales.

Coffey said Omnia is not asking the city to give it land for free. However, the group has "asked the resulting amount be kicked back into construction of the theater."

Members believe they can raise an additional $35.5 million to $47.5 million from federal, state, county and city grants.

The surplus from such sources would be put into the endowment, leaving about $10 million they would need to raise in donations from individuals, sponsors, corporations and foundations. The group currently has about $500,000.

Funds to operate the theater also will come from several sources, including the endowment and ticket sales, but not the city.

Omnia members say they would bring in a professional management group to run the theater. Once bonds for the development are paid off they are not concerned about who becomes the owner and said they would work out such details with the city.

Impact

The Omnia board believes its development would result in an annual economic impact of $150 million. Members predict $16.6 million in new annual taxes coming into the city at the end of the TIF.

Despite adding more than 600 residential units and a theater complex with up to 3,850 seats, members believe the traffic impact will be minimal.

Coffey acknowledges most people will be skeptical about that assertion but the group has had a traffic study and says surges from the train and theater will come at different times and tend to dissipate within minutes.

Omnia's proposal calls for several improvements to help traffic flow, including a new light at Loomis and Fifth Avenue, eliminating curbside parking from Loomis to Washington and adding dedicated turn lanes.

Density in the immediate area also would change because of the development, rising to about 12 units per acre, up from about 1.5 units per acre. Despite density increasing by eight times its current level, Coffey again says the impact is insignificant. He points to the average density over the new development area and downtown combined as being just two units per acre.

He also doesn't expect an influx of new students into area schools, guessing there would likely only be about 10 to 15 youngsters.

Board members say they want to ease the concerns of area residents and stress they are not proposing the demolition of any homes or the Fifth Avenue Station commercial facility.

Next steps

Omnia members say it's up to the city when the development would begin because the city owns the land.

Councilmen previously have said the project is not being given any special consideration and Omnia can bring its proposal forward just like any other group during the course of the city's Fifth Avenue study.

Omnia says it eventually will present details of the project to individual homeowners associations. It had planned to do so last month but canceled the meeting when it appeared it would be too large, not allowing a round-table discussion, according to Patterson Frier.

"We need people who feel strongly this could be a wonderful project and the next Riverwalk for Naperville and the capstone to what is already a great city - but it's a one time opportunity," Macko Wisnosky said. "It's either now or it isn't going to happen."