Residents criticize Lisle leadership over downtown grocery opportunity, exclusivity agreements and past TIFs

Multiple public commenters at the Village of Lisle Aug. 4 meeting criticized village leadership and past development decisions for what they said was a lost opportunity to bring a grocery store to downtown Lisle and for years-long property exclusivity that kept buildings vacant.

Former trustee Dan Brecco said an exclusivity agreement tied to Green State Bank kept downtown property off the market for years and stalled an ‘‘organic, small organic grocery store’’ that, he said, would have been a strong downtown anchor. "It was a decision made by the Green State Bank to push out all the tenants, board up the building, and basically leave it vacant for 12 years," Brecco said. He also stated the exclusivity agreement expired in June and that the property only opened for public bid on March 17.

Resident Susan Sorel said a national grocery chain, Sprouts, had expressed interest in downtown Lisle and that, in her view, the mayor had ‘‘singly handedly shut them down in 30 minutes,’’ a claim Mayor Mullen called “ridiculous.” Village Manager Cook said the property in question is privately owned and that multiple offers were received; the village did not own the parcel and Green State Bank was handling the sale. "This is a free market society, and the village does not own that property," Cook said, adding the village has a master plan for downtown and that a grocery store is not considered the best use in alignment with that plan.

Public commenters warned that allowing too much first-floor residential in downtown redevelopment could reduce retail space and harm businesses. Brecco and others said they feared conversion of ground-floor retail to apartments would limit retail opportunities and visitation. Trustee Lesniak said she had not previously been aware of the scale of the downtown concerns and encouraged residents to seek facts and meet with trustees directly.

Village officials said they have been fielding many social-media questions and public comments and asked for engagement that focuses on factual questions; Mayor Mullen asked residents not to target family members of elected officials and rejected personal attacks. No formal zoning or redevelopment action on the downtown property was taken or voted on during the Aug. 4 meeting; speakers described past transactions and perceptions, and staff said future redevelopment proposals will follow the master-plan review and standard approval processes.