Demolition of Mount Prospect's Central Plaza begins next week
With the scheduled demolition of Central Plaza less than a week away, Mount Prospect officials Tuesday agreed to spend more than $290,000 for environmental remediation at the vacant strip mall.
Bill Cooney, the village's community development director, said work to tear down the shopping center at Central Road and Route 83 should begin Sept. 8.
As part of the effort to remove the dilapidated center and make the site attractive for redevelopment, the village hired V3 Companies to clear any potential environmental roadblocks.
Cooney said there are seven abandoned fuel heating tanks at the rear of the building, as well as some contamination from a previous dry cleaning operation.
The goal is to obtain a No Further Remediation (NFR) letter from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, so the site can be redeveloped, officials said.
"This proposal covers all the paperwork involved with getting a full letter," Cooney said.
V3 will be paid through Tax Increment Financing funds, and the cost is expected to be recovered later after the sale of the land.
Cooney said fencing is up around the property, and ComEd and Nicor will be on the site this week to shut off utility service.
Most of the shopping center's walls will be dismantled during demolition, but the west wall on the north side will be left standing, since it sits on the property line separating it from neighboring homes, Cooney said.
Cooney said a lien will be placed on the property, beginning the foreclosure process, which will in turn trigger an auction sale.