Revival for long stalled Antioch home developments?

Steps are underway in Antioch to complete two housing developments that have been idle since the Great Recession brought building to a halt.

Village officials have authorized steps to restructure $26 million in debt to allow Elmhurst developer Troy Mertz to complete the sprawling Clublands and Neuhaven (now known as Deercrest) subdivisions on either side of Route 173 at Savage Road.

Together, the former Neumann Homes projects called for more than 1,000 mostly single-family homes.

Many have been built, but the bulk have remained on the drawing board since the homebuilder declared bankruptcy in 2007.

The bankruptcy and the housing market crash created a vexing situation village officials have been trying to solve.

"We've been dealing with Neumann Homes issues since 2007," said Village Administrator Jim Keim.

The involvement included lengthy legal action that reached the Illinois Supreme Court. Using grants and funds secured from Neumann, the village installed utilities and made improvements, such as public parks, in populated areas of the developments to kick start the projects.

"This all could have been dirt if it weren't for the work the village had been doing," Mertz said Thursday as he showed a visitor through the Clublands. "It could have been a really blighted situation."

About 200 lots are vacant but improved, meaning they are ready for construction. But nothing materialized until Mertz, who purchased The Conservancy, a similar Neumann Homes subdivision in Gilberts, saw an opportunity in Antioch.

Mertz said he purchased 80 townhouse lots in Neuhaven and 635 single-family lots in Clublands from banks that wanted to clear their books of the liabilities.

"The bank doesn't want to do that type of speculative building," according to Mertz. The same type of debt was refinanced for the Gilberts project, which has resumed, and Antioch officials were agreeable.

In this case, two special service areas for each development were combined and the village is refinancing the debt to secure a more favorable interest rate. Special service areas are a tax on residents within the area to pay for public improvements.

"What the village is going for is to put the special service areas on more solid ground with lower rates and lower payments for the residents," Keim said. "The village has tried very hard for these developments to proceed as originally intended."

Keim said Neuhaven is about 80 percent built, with about 20 townhouse lots and about 15 scattered single-family lots remaining.

Clublands was planned for 965 single-family homes, with about 320 built, Mertz said. His proposal to modify a portion of the Neuhaven development for single-family homes and details for a clubhouse at Clublands are being reviewed.

Village Trustee Mary Dominiak, the board liaison for economic development, said completing the subdivisions would create value for residents there and generate property and sales taxes. "It puts more roof tops, which would make us more attractive to potential retailers," she said.

Mertz described the Chicago-area housing market as "sensitive" and "not completely healed." He said he sold 299 of the 985 homes in the Gilberts development to NVR Ryan Homes, which has signed a letter of intent for the Clublands.

"Everybody wants to turn the lights back on," he said. "The foundation has been set."