Lake Zurich resident working to bring technology companies to town
A Lake Zurich resident and former Motorola engineer said he hopes to make his hometown a center for tech innovation by consolidating his consulting company, light manufacturing operation and nonprofit into a new development near the village's downtown.
Mitul Patel, 38, pitched Lake Zurich leaders this week on his plan to build a two-story, 50,000-square-foot facility at 305 W. Main St., that would be known as the Village of Lake Zurich Technology Center.
"We have the opportunity to make Lake Zurich a technology destination," said Patel, noting the engineering programs at the University of Illinois and Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana. "Instead of going out to the bay or other geographic location why not Lake Zurich? Why not the Midwest?"
Patel submitted his plan for a courtesy review during this week's village board meeting. The board did not vote on the plan, which will first go before the planning and zoning commission for a recommendation.
Patel's company, MP Consulting, is made up of engineers who were part of Motorola Mobility when it was purchased by Google in 2012 for $12.5 billion. He plans to move the 25-person staff from their current Palatine office to the proposed center and expects to add 40 to 50 employees in the coming years.
The center also would house A Making Company, currently operating in the industrial area of Lake Zurich. Patel said the main manufacturing done by the company is assembling drones for the U.S. Army and he stressed it would not be burdensome to future neighbors.
"There's no chemicals, there's no water usage," Patel said of the work. "It is what I call screws, adhesives and packaging."
The plan also calls for the center to house the Aarush M. Patel Foundation, which provides grants and fellowships to research institutions trying to make a meaningful impact on maternal fetal health. The nonprofit is named after Patel's son whose life ended before it could start, according to the foundation's website. The foundation also seeks to provide support to parents grieving the loss of a child.
Patel provided renderings of the planned two-story building but made it clear he was open to changing them based on community feedback.
"Everything here is up for debate in terms of the aesthetics, the lighting, the architecture," Patel said.
Trustee William Riley said he was glad Patel's building plan is flexible and that he was open to input but asked him to provide more specifics about the building before the formal review process begins.
"Having those finite items be more definitive at that next step would help at least the planning and zoning board take more consideration of what it looks like," Riley said.
Patel vowed to be a good neighbor.
"I'm a resident myself so I'm not here to disrupt anyone's homeownership or daily work life," Patel said.
The planning and zoning commission's next meeting is set for June 21. It is not yet known whether Patel's proposal will be ready for consideration then.