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Orland Park OKs consulting work and inducement resolution as redevelopment plans for Orland Square Mall proceed
Summary
Trustees approved a consulting agreement with SB Friedman for up to $30,000 and adopted an inducement resolution to allow reimbursements if a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district is later established for Orland Square Mall redevelopment, including a potential relocation of Dick's Sporting Goods into the former Sears space.
The Village of Orland Park Board of Trustees on March 17 authorized up to $30,000 for SB Friedman Development Advisors to perform as-needed consulting related to the Orland Square Mall redevelopment and adopted an inducement resolution that would allow the village to reimburse eligible expenses if a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district is ultimately created for the site.
Mayor Picow and staff described the work as an early-phase evaluation to determine whether a TIF could fund stormwater improvements and other infrastructure needed to support redevelopment of the former Sears site and surrounding ring road. The mayor said the inducement resolution is only a procedural first step and does not itself create a TIF: "This is simply to say that we are authorizing that if that happens, we can reimburse expenses that are currently happening if they're eligible according to the TIF law," he said.
Trustees discussed the long history of vacancy at the Sears location (vacant since 2018) and the challenge of assembling funding for stormwater capacity and other infrastructure. Staff and trustees noted Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) stormwater requirements and the village’s view that a public-purpose stormwater/water-storage solution could be paid for via increment generated by future development. Trustee Reardon and others also reviewed prior TIF and incentive approaches used at Von Maur and other local projects; some trustees asked that the consultant consider alternatives to a TIF where feasible.
The inducement resolution mentions a possible new Dick's Sporting Goods concept to occupy the Sears site; trustees described the Dick's concept as larger and experiential compared with a typical anchor and said early market feedback indicates it could improve mall traffic. The board voted to approve the SB Friedman agreement (vote recorded as unanimous) and to adopt the inducement resolution (vote recorded as unanimous).
Staff said the consulting work will position the village to evaluate redevelopment plans as they are submitted, and the inducement resolution allows certain pre-formation expenses to be reimbursed under TIF law if a district is later approved through the statutory public-notice and hearing process.
Trustee Byrd (Trustee Healy in transcript) and others asked the consultant to examine alternative financing and incentive structures as part of the evaluation; the board did not adopt any TIF or incentive terms at this meeting.
