BP open, sports bar expected by April in far west Elgin

A new BP gas station and Dunkin' Donuts opened Thursday on Route 20 at Nesler Road after a yearslong project in far west Elgin.

Oasis on 20 also will accommodate a Subway sandwich shop, currently located across the street, that will move in by spring, owner Joe Lazar said.

Lazar hoped to open Oasis on 20 last Labor Day, but there were some last-minute delays related to weather conditions and underground detention, he said. Plans initially were submitted in 2014.

Lazar and his four brothers also own and operate a BP station at Starks Corner in Pingree Grove and another in Monroe Center, south of Rockford. As for the Elgin location, "I had been eyeing that corner for 15 years," he said.

Neal Patel, manager of Subway at 3091 W. Route 20, said the new location at Oasis on 20 will allow easier access, especially for people traveling west. Parking at the current location is difficult in the evenings because of customers of nearby restaurants, and it will get worse when a new TJ's Bar and Grill sports bar opens, Patel said.

TJ's Bar and Grill owner Terry Diegel of Elgin said the build-out started Friday after a city permit was issued Thursday. The landlord had told the Daily Herald this summer that the sports bar would open by December, but that was "optimistic," Diegel said.

Diegel said he hopes to open by April. "My March Madness hope is being dwindled down to an Easter opening," he said.

He and other investors have about 20 years of experience in the restaurant, bar and hospitality industry, including businesses in Ohio, Florida and Colorado, he said. The Elgin bar is named after his children, Tricia and Joey.