Woodman’s Foods adds Buffalo Grove site

Gregory Harutunian
The 240,000-square foot Woodman's Food Store in Pleasant Prairie is being used as the proto-type for the proposed store to be built in Lakemoor. The company is still negotiating for the purchase of a 74-acre parcel at the intersection of routes 12 and 120.

The 240,000-square foot Woodman’s Food Store in Pleasant Prairie is being used as the proto-type for the proposed store to be built in Lakemoor. The company is still negotiating for the purchase of a 74-acre parcel at the intersection of routes 12 and 120.

A proposed Woodman’s Foods complex in Lakemoor, still mired in civil litigation over a tax-increment financing district created for the site, remains a viable project with methods of resolution being sought.

The company, however, announced June 8 that it is pursuing a separate location in Buffalo Grove, and gained that municipality’s tacit approval.

The Janesville, Wis.-based company has selected a long-dormant 25-acre patch of land on the northwest corner of the intersection at Milwaukee Avenue and Deerfield Parkway, known as “Berenesa Plaza,” a 1992 commercial enterprise, which never materialized. A 240,000-square-foot store is planned with outlying retail shops, a fueling station, and parking amenities.

The Village Board of Buffalo Grove formally approved a 20-year package of economic incentives, during its June 20 meeting, providing $7 million to the company. Approximately $4 million would be etched out of the amount to pay for road upgrades at the designated intersection.

“The target is to get open sometime in 2018, meaning work would begin in 2017,” said Christopher Stilling, Buffalo Grove’s director of community development. “The process encompasses the entitlements for the project with building and zoning accommodations, roadway and intersection improvements being permitted by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

“Woodman’s is taking the lead on the road improvements with our support,” he said. “The agreement, passed by the board, allows for reimbursement to the store since they are front-loading all of the costs associated with the roadwork. Obviously, they are working through this process, and want to move as quickly as possible.”

A similar commercial development planned in Lakemoor covers a 74-acre southwest corner parcel at the intersection of routes 12 and 120. Those plans have been derailed by a civil suit entered by the Wauconda Consolidated Unit School District 18, Wauconda Township, and the Wauconda Library District listed as the plaintiffs.

The three taxing entities moved forward with litigation, one day after the Village of Lakemoor approved the TIF district for the 74-acre site, and adjacent 40-acre property. Village officials contend the area is “blighted,” a qualifying requirement for TIF designation, due to chronic flooding. The lawsuit disputes the assertion by citing decades of crop-farming at the site, negating the “blighted” tag.

The purpose of a TIF is to help improve blighted areas within a municipality.

Once a TIF District is established, the base value is determined. As improvements are made to the property within the TIF, the assessed valuation increases. Any increase over the base value is deposited into a TIF account that is used for economic development. The maximum length of the TIF is 23 years.

The hope is that once the TIF expires, the improvements to the property and subsequent increase in property tax revenue will help local taxing bodies, such as schools.

“There is a flooding problem on the land, and it has to be addressed,” said Matt Dabrowski, the village’s Community and Economic Development director. “Water and sewer infrastructure has to be brought to the site. The Wauconda School District has not responded to our request for meetings, and has yet to reach out to us.

“The township allowed us the opportunity to meet with some representatives at one of their meetings, and while support may be there, we are searching for ways to resolve the matter satisfactorily, for everyone concerned.”

The water and sewer work has been estimated at $12 million, and a tentative agreement with Woodman’s parent company equally shared those costs with the village. The effluent water would follow piping to the Northern Moraine Wastewater Reclamation district in Island Lake.

Woodman’s initial investment in Lakemoor was pegged at $40 million, and would be part of the village’s long-range plans in bringing commercial development to the intersection.

“We still look at Lakemoor being completed, and we would like it done soon,” said Brett Backus, the company’s vice president of land acquisitions. “There are a lot of moving pieces in both puzzles that deal with off-site improvements, and entitlements, at both sites. These are two very good local sites in Illinois.

“These improvements are in the purview of the two villages, and not under our control,” he said. “Absolutely, we are looking to expand into Illinois, and the goal is opening these stores. “The Buffalo Grove situation came together within the last six months. We are prepared to move with ideas for development of the property.”

Lakemoor has portions of its borders in Lake and McHenry counties, while Buffalo Grove is located in both Lake and Cook counties. The company’s concept behind identifying and attracting its customer base is also tied to implementing store placement at approximately 25-mile distances between them.

Woodman’s Foods is an employee-owned commercial enterprise with 16 locations, mostly in Wisconsin. The Illinois sites include Carpentersville, North Aurora, and Rockford.