Mount Prospect moving ahead with redevelopment of old police and fire headquarters

Mount Prospect is moving ahead with plans to redevelop Block 56, the property that includes the former downtown police and fire headquarters.

The village is working on an agreement with a new preferred developer of the fire and police headquarters, with plans for a $30 million project that envisions a five-story building with approximately 85 apartments and 3,500 square feet of retail that could include a cafe, restaurant or brewery.

"It's probably a mix of 20 West and Prospect Place. It's about that scale," Community Development Director Bill Cooney said of previous downtown redevelopment projects.

There is also progress on a potential developer of the Chase Bank building on the block, at 111 E. Busse Ave.

Cooney said a group has signed a letter of intent on the building for a separate redevelopment project, he said, but he has had only preliminary discussions with the group, which is still in the review process.

Chase Bank is leaving the building at 111 E. Busse Ave. and moving to its new building at Northwest Highway and Main Street, in the former Submarine Express location, in September.

The redevelopment of Block 56, bounded by Northwest Highway, Emerson Street, Busse Avenue, and Maple Street, had been stalled because the original preferred developer, Greystar Real Estate Advisors, pulled out in March.

Greystar had intended to develop the Chase Bank building, as well as the fire and police property. But Greystar backed out after it ran into a roadblock because of the need to relocate cell antennas on the Chase building that are under a 50-year lease that began in 2017.

That forced the village to cast its net for a new developer to redevelop the property minus the Chase Bank building, with the result that the village has chosen the team of T2 Investments, the Harlem Irving Companies, and Hamilton Partners.

Harlem Irving Companies developed the 10 N. Main property, while the T2 Investments group includes Tom Lowe, who was involved in both the 10 N. Main and the Prospect Place projects.

Cooney said it was the combination of the scale of the project, the mixed use and the reputation of the partners that convinced the village to pick the team as the preferred developer.

"They are all three very solid companies," he said.

Cooney said the planning and zoning process of the fire and police headquarters project could start as early as next month.

If the village board approves, shovels could go into the ground by the spring.