Businesses won't replace Brandt's in Palatine
A new Walgreens and a bank will not be going up on the site of Brandt's Little Cafe.
On Monday, the Palatine Village Council voted 6-0 to reject plans for these two businesses to be built at the spot which now holds the popular restaurant.
The vote to deny this project came after about an hour of discussion about whether or not putting a Walgreens and a Fifth Third Bank on the land, which is just less than 2 acres, is too much. Both buildings would have drive-through lanes.
Des Plaines-based developer DL Acquisitions is currently under contract to purchase the land where Brandt's sits, at the corner of Northwest Highway and Quentin Road.
"This is a good commercial corner," said Village Manager Reid Ottesen. "Concerns the staff has made is that it's trying to fit too much into a little spot."
Most of the councilmen agreed, saying if only a Walgreens were being proposed here, there wouldn't be as many issues.
Rumors of a bank going up there have been ongoing for years. An initial proposal came forward about two years ago that just had a bank, but a formal application never was submitted to the village.
Mayor Rita Mullins passed on a negative note. She asked what else could go on this corner and stressed that she doesn't want to see the Brandt's building end up vacant.
"Personally, it looks like this is something that would be an addition," she said. "Am I happy about it? No. But I don't want to see a vacant property there either."
Gary Lundgren, a partner with the development group, has said that the project couldn't work economically unless both businesses were built.
He declined to comment after Monday's vote and wouldn't say whether or not any new plans for this area will come forward.
Brandt's, a gray stone building, has become a suburban landmark. It dates back more than 120 years and originally was a farmhouse in Inverness.
Owner George Grisco has said that if the village did not approve this proposal, he might just close the restaurant down.
Last month, Palatine's plan commission voted 8-1 against this plan.