Hoffman Estates approves changes to site it's selling to Popeyes developer

Hoffman Estates officials have approved the reconfiguration of a site on Golf Road they're selling to developers of a new Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, but a clear construction time frame awaits the closing of the sale.

"Hopefully now they can get on track," Hoffman Estates Director of Development Services Peter Gugliotta said. "They were waiting to get something resolved with (the Illinois Department of Transportation)."

The reconfiguration of the 0.7-acre site at 65 E. Golf Road, just east of Hoffman Plaza, was made possible by IDOT's approval of roadway access points. The Popeyes will not have an entrance driveway on Golf Road, but a right-turn-only exit. The main access will be along the Hoffman Plaza driveway immediately to the west.

In September 2020, Hoffman Estates officials entered into a contract to sell the land to the developer for $800,000. But the building design, which includes a drive-through, wasn't approved by the village until June.

Even then there were several additional factors that kept the project's time frame uncertain, including IDOT's approval and the closing date of the village's sale of the land.

Another Popeyes proposed at about the same time last year for the northeast corner of Algonquin and Meacham roads in Schaumburg has been open since June. But that project involved only the renovation of a long-vacated former Wendy's restaurant rather than the construction of a new building.

The village purchased the Golf Road site in 2012 with the intention of spurring new development there. Officials immediately razed shuttered snowmobile and motorcycle shops on the land and replaced them with a lawn to make the property more attractive to potential investors.

At one point, the owner of the adjacent Hoffman Plaza - the Florida-based Sterling Organization - proposed buying the site for a three-tenant retail building but never followed through.