Mount Prospect mulling incentives to seal deal for a downtown Caputo's
Now that a developer has announced a long-term lease with Angelo Caputo's Fresh Markets to bring a grocery store to downtown Mount Prospect, village trustees will consider a $1.5 million financial incentive package to help seal the deal.
Caputo's, which has been in business since 1958 and operates seven grocery stores in the West and Northwest suburbs, plans to occupy a 15,000-square-foot first-floor space at the southwest corner of Prospect Avenue and Maple Street.
The village board on Tuesday will consider an incentive package with Wingspan Development Group to move the project forward.
Under the proposal, the village will provide about $629,708 in tax increment financing district funding to pay about a third of the construction costs. The remaining $883,188 in incentives would be in the form of sales tax sharing over 10 years.
"It's something that the village has been looking for in our downtown for quite some time," Village Manager Michael Cassady said of the proposed downtown grocery store.
According to village documents, groceries located in a typical shopping center space generally pay less rent because they attract other stores paying higher rents. Maple Street Lofts presents a different situation, according to village officials, since it would occupy all of the development's retail space.
In recommending the deal, village staff cited similar incentive deals neighboring suburbs offered for grocery stores, including Des Plaines giving Mariano's $875,000 to locate at the northeast corner of Golf Road and Mount Prospect Road, and Buffalo Grove's $7 million sales tax package for a Woodman's Food Market.