Addison tries to speed development on blighted site
Addison officials hope complicated legal issues surrounding the vacant Dominick’s site at the southeast corner of Lake Street and Mill Road will end by November, making way for new developers.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed,” said John Berley, assistant village manager and director of community development. “We would love to see an end to that blight.”
Berley said up to five area developers are interested in building on the site that has stood vacant for several years, but there is a lot of red tape standing in the way.
According to DuPage County court records, developer Charles Markopoulos, president of Chicago-based Akton Realty Corp., purchased the property for $10.9 million in January 2008. Markopoulos told the village he hoped to attract Jewel or another grocer anchor to the property, Berley said.
“It was still the peak of the market and he paid top dollar,” Berley said. “He was counting on Jewel because its lease was expiring across the street (at Green Meadows Plaza) and they were working on plans for about a year, but ultimately Jewel didn’t see the benefit.”
Instead, Jewel invested about $2 million to revamp its current store to the east, at Lake Street and Kennedy Drive.
Without a major tenant, the property went into foreclosure and Markopoulos was sued in October 2009 by Wheatland Bank of Naperville in DuPage County court. But Wheatland Bank dissolved shortly afterward, putting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, in charge of the loan, said Berley.
“It’s a big bureaucracy and it takes us forever to get maintenance done, since you must go through all these channels,” he said.
This month, Addison filed a resolution in court to support the FDIC’s foreclosure in an effort to expedite sale of the property.
“We also considered filing a lawsuit, but our attorneys advised against since it might cause further delays,” Berley said. “But the village is concerned with blight and safety issues.”
Now Addison officials predict the lawsuit may end by November and the FDIC must decide whether to auction the property or authorize a short sale to the developer who makes the best offer.
“There’s a lot of paperwork involved and (Markopoulos) must prove he can’t make the payments on this,” Berley said.
Still, the developers’ interest in the site remains. And although their business ideas are confidential, Berley said he’s certain any of the proposals will be a good retail use that residents will enjoy.
“We are doing everything we can, and I contact buyers on a regular basis to make sure they are still interested” he said. “With luck, we’ll see some construction there a year from now.”
The nearby vacant Fannie May property, at the southeast corner of the intersection, is owned by different developers. Berley said the owners have reported numerous offers, but told the village they suspect they will get a better price for the site once the old Dominick’s store is occupied.