Buffalo Grove development clears first hurdle

Another proposed development could help Buffalo Grove take advantage of a commercial market along the Milwaukee Avenue corridor.

The village board on Monday agreed to let the plan commission take a look at the Land and Lakes development on Milwaukee Avenue, north of Busch Parkway.

The village has been working with the property owners for years to put together a viable idea. The property comes in two parts, with 58 acres on the west side of Milwaukee and 7 acres on the east.

The plan calls for restaurants, retail and a hotel on the west end, which is a former construction and demolition landfill. The landfill portion had closed, and the site is currently being used as a landscape transfer station.

That transfer station, which serves as a drop-off site for clippings and tree limbs, is proposed to move to the east side of Milwaukee.

Jim Cowhey, the owner, said the actual building might have to wait another 2½ years per regulation from the Environmental Protection Agency because the site used to be a landfill. He said that might also change the way the site is developed.

"It's a little bit of a challenge, but it can be done," he said.

Martin Hanley, with Land and Lakes Development Corp., said he has received interest from retailers for the site. However, he said the group still hasn't determined what the actual mix of restaurants and retail will be yet.

Trustee Jeff Braiman questioned the need of another hotel after the village last week approved giving economic incentives for one at the nearby Berenesa Plaza, at Milwaukee Avenue and Deerfield Parkway.

Hanley said he hasn't done an economic feasibility study for the area yet. However, he said he has received interest from hotels looking for a location.

Trustee Jeff Berman, who was against giving incentives to the hotel, said his position hadn't changed in the matter. He also said he'd like to see something more than a run-of-the-mill strip mall. However, he said the site also had a lot of potential.

"We're all very excited by the prospects that this brings," he said.

Cowhey assured the board that he and his family searched long for a developer that would bring something unique and exciting to town.

"We're not presenting the typical development," he said.

Trustee Steve Trilling also warned the developer to be cautious with two-story retail, as is proposed in the plan, because that has the potential to fail.

The development will be reviewed by the plan commission at an upcoming meeting and be brought back to the village board at a later date.