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Board approves Smoke Barbecue address change and restaurant site plan amid debate over village support for dining businesses
Summary
The board approved revised agreements allowing Smoke Barbecue to relocate and approved a separate restaurant site plan at 1808 Waukegan Road. Public commenters warned that village financial support for restaurants can undercut existing businesses; staff described tenant-improvement matching criteria capped at a $300,000 village match.
The Glenview Village Board on March 19 approved two items that will affect downtown dining options: a revised-agreement package to allow Smoke Barbecue to occupy a new address (1132/1122 Waukegan Road) and a separate final site plan and preliminary appearance for Lago by Fabio Viviani at 1808 Waukegan Road.
Staff and the applicant described the Smoke Barbecue change as an address and site reconfiguration of a previously approved redevelopment. The project includes a complete interior rehabilitation, a proposed 4,500-square-foot barbecue restaurant with about 90 seats and outdoor rooftop dining, expanded parking at 1122 Waukegan and landscaping. The developer intends to close in mid‑April and begin construction this summer.
Trustees asked whether Smoke must occupy the space and what would happen if a lease is canceled. Staff said the tenant must be Smoke for the agreement to remain in effect, and that if the tenant cancels before taking occupancy the agreement would be nullified; staff also said construction schedules and permit time limits would be included to encourage timely redevelopment.
Several public commenters objected to village financial support for private restaurants. William Sites argued the proposal was larger than the originally approved project, questioned levels of public assistance and warned that forgiven loans function like grants that advantage incoming restaurants over existing local businesses. Gerald Berry said Glenview appears to be subsidizing multiple restaurants and urged caution in using public funds to finance private entertainment venues. The board heard similar comments during consideration of the 1808 Waukegan plan.
Director Brady explained the village's business support programs and tenant-improvement process: staff itemizes eligible costs and evaluates whether proposals represent "significant enhancements." Brady said the village typically matches 50% of eligible costs up to $150,000 per program; the village match has been capped at $300,000 in total for combined tenant and facade programs, meaning eligible work of about $600,000 could yield up to $300,000 in village matching funds.
Trustees emphasized different perspectives: some praised competition and downtown vitality; others asked for clearer, less-subjective criteria and more public input on large, publicly supported projects. Director Brady said staff will continue to work with applicants to itemize costs and that specific assistance for the Lago and Smoke projects is not yet finalized.
Both agenda items were approved by roll call: the revised Waukegan agreements for Smoke Barbecue were approved unanimously, and the site plan for the 1808 Waukegan restaurant was approved unanimously after trustee questions about parking and the tenant-improvement process.
