Auto mall up for council vote

The Elgin City Council this week will vote on plans for a new high-end auto mall proposed for Randall Road.

The city's plan commission voted against the project.

But city officials say they've worked through many of the concerns -- including the height of proposed signs on the site -- with the developer.

"It's been a difficult project," Assistant City Manager Sean Stegall said Monday. "But it's an exciting one for the city to have a luxury auto mall."

Plans call for as many as nine auto dealerships on the 86-acre site at Randall Road and the Northwest Tollway.

Plan commission members this month took issue with the height of several proposed signs on the site -- which in some cases would have reached 100 feet.

But a memo from city officials say they have since revised the agreement with the developer so that the tallest sign on the property is no more than 80 feet.

City staff also say they've worked out an incentive package with the developer worth millions of dollars over the next two decades.

Under the terms of the proposal, the city would give the developer $3.5 million up front for infrastructure improvements on the property.

The city would also split all sales tax revenue for the next 20 years, with 25 percent going to the developer, 25 percent to the owners and 50 percent to the city.

City officials say tax-sharing agreements are fairly common with automobile dealerships because of the amount of revenue they bring in -- as much as 40 percent of the city's sales tax base.

"The dollars they bring in far exceed what we pay out," Stegall said.

The city council meeting begins at 7 p.m. at city hall, 150 Dexter Court.