Wheeling Plan Commission backs DBAT indoor baseball training facility at 100 Chadwick Drive

The Wheeling Plan Commission voted unanimously June 24 to recommend approval of a special‑use permit for a DBAT indoor baseball and softball training academy at 100 Chadwick Drive, forwarding the item to the Village Board for final action on July 6.

Trevor Haley, the applicant, told the commission he has worked in Major League Baseball for 20 years and plans to operate a DBAT franchise at the site to provide instruction, cage rentals and limited retail. "I've always had the desire to open my own training slash hitting facility," Haley said, adding the operation would follow a similar blueprint to an existing Mokena location.

In presenting the application, Joe Pador, Haley’s real‑estate agent, said Seneca Real Estate Group favored Wheeling for the project because of its proximity to Heritage Park and a dense youth baseball market. "We felt Wheeling would be an ideal location," Pador said, noting that visitors to the facility could bring local economic activity to nearby shops and restaurants.

Community development staff recommended approval with seven conditions intended to limit potential neighborhood impacts. Miss Nye, a community development staff member, read the conditions into the record, which included: at least one employee on site during operating hours; limiting parties or gatherings to facility participants; prohibiting tournaments and competitive events; requiring all activities to occur indoors; providing a screened, code‑compliant trash enclosure with site plan approval before construction; obtaining any required sprinkler and fire‑alarm permits and approvals prior to a certificate of occupancy; and securing a Wheeling sign permit under Title 21 before installing exterior signage.

Commissioners asked about staffing, capacity and parking. Commissioner Smart praised the project description and asked about employee numbers; Haley said a core team would include a general manager, assistant manager and a lead instructor and estimated about 7–10 regular staff, supplemented by roughly 8–10 part‑time/front‑desk workers during busy periods. When asked about occupancy and parking, the applicant and agent said the DBAT space would be physically separated from other tenants and that the site has roughly 100–108 parking stalls; they noted observed daytime parking utilization between about 25 and 50 cars during site visits and said final occupancy limits will be determined through the permit review and fire‑department inspection.

Haley characterized the DBAT franchise as successful in other markets; he told commissioners that DBAT has more than 200 franchise locations and said, in his experience, the brand has not shuttered locations in recent decades. That claim was presented as the applicant’s experience and was not independently verified at the hearing.

After questions, a commissioner moved to recommend approval of Docket PSU26‑0010 with the seven staff conditions; the motion passed with all present commissioners voting yes. Miss Nye told the applicant the Village Board will consider the final decision at its July 6 meeting, and Haley said he planned to attend and be available to answer trustees’ questions.

The commission also approved the minutes from its June 10 meeting and adjourned.