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Roscoe hears Place Foundry plan to move Main Street and I‑90/Rockton Road work from planning to implementation
Summary
At the May 20 village board meeting Place Foundry reviewed 12 months of planning work, described next steps for a Main Street business-district alliance and I‑90/Rockton Road site readiness, and said it will propose a 12-month implementation contract that merges prior engagements.
David Sydney, a consultant with Place Foundry, told the Roscoe Village Board on May 20 that the Main Street planning effort is transitioning into implementation work and outlined priorities for the coming 12 months, including business-district organizing, tactical projects on Bridge Street and at Hodges Run, zoning language, property-level RFPs and grant pursuits.
Place Foundry’s presentation summarized work begun in 2023: coaching workshops, a place-mapping report, a market analysis and zoning framework. "We then moved into doing a zoning analysis and some concept plans, as well as market analysis work for you as well in terms of what are the opportunities for commercial and residential development on Main Street," Sydney said. He described the group’s current focus as converting design concepts into buildable projects and mobilizing the newly formed business district alliance.
The presentation matters because the work is tied to immediate projects — a Bridge Street pavilion and a pop-up retail incubator at Hodges Run — and to longer-term development around the I‑90/Rockton Road interchange. Sydney said Place Foundry has submitted grant applications (an ARP community challenge application and a T‑Mobile pop‑up retail grant) and is finalizing marketing and outreach materials to support both private investment and public funding requests.
Board members asked when zoning language and formal hearings would be scheduled. Sydney said he would email a draft ordinance to trustees for review and then schedule a public open house and hearing; he estimated that adoption could follow within a couple of months depending on timing of public notice. He also described a rollout of working groups from the business-district alliance to carry out tactical programming once the Bridge Street pavilion is complete.
Trustees pressed Place Foundry for clarity on contract terms and priorities. Sydney said the firm’s prior engagement is expired and offered to present a consolidated, 12‑month agreement that would set a fixed monthly fee tied to the board’s chosen priorities. "I would offer to present to you a 12‑month agreement so you know what the monthly fixed fee is for that. And that's gonna be predicated on the priority," he said. Trustees asked for a written draft of the contract, an updated RFP for property work and clearer communications to trustees about project status and deliverables.
The board discussed sequencing: some trustees suggested a larger share of Place Foundry resources be focused on I‑90/Rockton Road priorities, while others prioritized finishing Main Street tactical projects. Place Foundry recommended the village identify three priority areas (geographic or topical) to guide allocation of the next agreement.
Next steps noted at the meeting: the business-district alliance will continue meeting (the consultant said the next meeting was scheduled for the 28th), trustees will receive the draft zoning language by email for comment, Place Foundry will return with a 12‑month contract proposal and staff will prepare an item for a committee-of-the-whole discussion to refine the scope and RFP elements. No formal vote on the contract or zoning ordinance took place at the May 20 meeting.
