A bill passed this week by the Illinois Senate that would trim as much as $9 million from property taxes on a 528-acre eastern Will County parcel advances the prospects of a proposed mall.
In a 50-3 vote, the Senate on Tuesday approved legislation that would increase the property’s maximum tax abatement to $12 million and extend the time period to 20 years. Current law limits the potential property-tax abatement to $3 million within a 10-year period.
The tax abatement was approved by the financially beleaguered District 201-U on Feb. 19 as part of an agreement with the Village of Monee and with Monee Associates, the limited corporation established by an Exmore, Va., developer. The District 201-U board agreed to cap its $1.60-per-square-foot portion on developed property at $1.25 a square foot.
In return, Eileen Kirkwood, who is managing the project, promised that the school district would receive $1.3 million in property-tax receipts. Kirkwood is proposing the construction of a car dealership, several budget motels and a hotel-convention center on the site, which is west of Interstate Highway 57, between Dralle and Monee-Manhattan Roads.
Kirkwood said Wednesday that she had signed “three major players” for the commercial development. She said one enterprise, on nearly 30 acres outside the proposed 200-acre mall, will generate significant sales-tax receipts. She attributed the interest of the three businesses to the legislation, which “gives a tax predictability” that is important to “merchants who are putting down hundreds of thousands (of dollars).”
But state Sen. Tom Dunn (D-Joliet), who sponsored the bill in the Senate, said the legislation would support development in the 528-acre area, “which means jobs and later revenue to the taxing district.”
Rep. Flora Ciarlo (R-Steger), who sponsored the bill in the House, stressed the legislation’s importance to District 201-U, which serves Crete, Monee, University Park and part of Park Forest.
“Everybody realized what difficult circumstances everyone is in,” Ciarlo said. “This offers opportunities, especially for Monee and, in particular, District 201-U.”
Ciarlo said she sponsored the bill to increase the amount of property-tax receipts District 201-U could return to the developer. She said the legislation was pursued at the request of Crete-Monee, whose offices are in her district. The bill passed the Illinois House of Representatives 76-32 in late March.
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The board approved the abatement on the recommendation of school Supt. Steven K. Humphrey, who had been contacted by State Rep. Larry Wennlund (R-New Lenox). Wennlund is one of two attorneys representing the Monee project.