New driver's services facility opens in Lake Zurich
An Illinois driver's services facility began a new era Wednesday in a southern Lake County mall.
After a roughly 30-year run in Libertyville, the facility relocated to Deerpath Commons on Rand Road in Lake Zurich. Officials from the Illinois secretary of state's office expect the new location to draw patrons from sections of Lake, Cook and McHenry counties.
Rick Kurnick, the secretary of state's acting director of driver services for the Chicago area, was at the 9,638-square-foot Lake Zurich operation to assist in its debut Wednesday. He said the facility was on pace to handle a minimum of 400 opening day customers.
"Crazy better than we thought," Kurnick said during a break.
Jason Sfire, vice president of Deerpath Commons owner Fidelity Group, said the company used a fresh layout designed by the secretary of state's office to customize the space. He said he was pleased to see the new visitors to the mall.
"Just excitement and energy around the shopping center and around the area," Sfire said.
Kyle Kordell, Lake Zurich's assistant to the village manager, said a projected average 1,000 daily visitors to the facility should lead to economic benefits for Lake Zurich and bordering communities.
"It fills a large vacancy in Deerpath Commons," Kordell said. "Restaurants and stores along Rand Road will benefit."
Bright and roomy, the Lake Zurich facility has seating for 150 customers and more standing areas compared to the smaller, 6,700-square-foot space in the Brookside shopping center on Peterson Road in Libertyville. The 23 customer service stations, with illuminated numbers atop poles, are part of what Sfire called a "clean and crisp" layout.
In addition to passenger vehicle road testing, the Lake Zurich facility will handle motorcycle testing that is projected to run from April to September.
Parking is seen as a plus for the Lake Zurich mall. At 400 spaces, Deerpath Commons has twice the number the Libertyville facility provided.
Because customers out of habit might travel to the longtime location in Libertyville, a sign on a window there notes the shift to Lake Zurich. Kurnick said he heard of a couple of customers who went to Libertyville by mistake Wednesday.
In July, Lake Zurich village board trustees approved a special-use permit the secretary of state's office needed to operate at Deerpath Commons,
Lake Zurich did not provide any financial incentives to the state for the move. State officials said the build-out cost at Deerpath Commons will be $129,000 over five years.