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Westchester board clears access agreements, signals inducement for Manheim Road redevelopment
Summary
The Village Board approved access agreements and an inducement resolution to allow due diligence for a proposed redevelopment at 1107 Manheim Road, including a potential Culver’s franchise and reimbursement discussions tied to a yet-to-be-created TIF; the inducement does not obligate the village, officials said.
The Westchester Village Board on Feb. 10 approved limited access agreements to allow developers to conduct environmental, geotechnical and IDOT studies at 1107 Manheim Road and passed an inducement resolution that could allow certain project costs to be reimbursed from a proposed Roosevelt Road Corridor tax‑increment financing (TIF) district.
The action cleared the way for Exede Commercial Real Estate and a Culver’s franchisee to access the site for due diligence and initial planning. The board also approved a related resolution expressing official intent that eligible expenditures incurred by developers could be reimbursed if the village later creates the TIF and executes a redevelopment agreement.
Village counsel cautioned that the inducement is preliminary. “This is merely an inducement … it is not guaranteeing that the village is going to enter into an agreement,” the village attorney said, noting the resolution recognizes developers’ early costs but does not obligate the village to approve a TIF or redevelopment agreement.
Trustees asked staff to route any technical plans through village plan review and the planning and zoning process, after which public hearings would follow. A trustee who asked to table a separate amendment to the Ryan LLC contract said the board should meet Ryan LLC in person before approving additional retif work; the board voted to table that amendment pending a Ryan representative’s appearance.
The board approved the access agreements and inducement resolution by roll call. Officials said the access agreements allow prospective developers’ engineers onto the property to verify site conditions before formal agreements are drafted or zoning actions are initiated.
Next steps include completion of the developers’ due diligence, village plan review and, if necessary, zoning and public hearings. Any future reimbursement of developer costs would depend on formal creation of the TIF and execution of a redevelopment agreement.
