How Buffalo Grove hopes to boost fortunes of struggling stretch of Dundee Road
A plan aimed at boosting redevelopment efforts around a pair of shopping centers and former auto dealerships in Buffalo Grove heads to a vote before the village board next month.
Village leaders held a public hearing Monday on the establishment of a tax increment financing district for the Dundee Road corridor. The district would be located around Dundee and Arlington Heights roads, and include the Plaza Verde and Strathmore shopping centers and dealership sites at 915-945 W. Dundee Road that have sat dormant for more than a decade.
The hearing is the final step before the village board votes on the proposed TIF district on Aug. 21.
If approved, the assessed value of the 23 properties within the district - currently valued at $28 million - would be frozen for up to 23 years. Any increase in the value created by redevelopment would go to a special village fund to pay for improvements within the district.
Officials estimate the district could generate as much as $75 million for upgrades.
Consultant Geoffrey Dickinson of SB Friedman Development Advisers, which produced a TIF report, said the corridor qualifies as a "conservation area" because it is at risk of becoming blighted. He cited factors including inadequate stormwater detention, aging buildings and high retail vacancy.
Village Trustee Joanne Johnson said that with the Town Center shopping center now being redeveloped, the Dundee Road corridor is the number one complaint she hears about Buffalo Grove.
"This board intends to do something about it, and I think the TIF will go a long way to reaching our goal," she said.