Two developers who thought they had found the right location for their next project hit a dead end after the Long Grove Village Board dismissed their proposal at its first appearance.
Market Properties Group Inc. was interested in converting the building that used to be the headquarters of CF Industries Inc. into luxury apartments for young families and empty-nesters. They came to Village Hall on Aug. 9 hoping to take the first step in that process.
But trustees, after hearing from about five angry neighbors and citing their own concerns about the concept’s viability, voted Market Properties down.
“I don’t think it fits our comprehensive plan or the character of our community,” said Village President Angie Underwood.
After the session, Market Properties principal Noah Gottlieb needed only one word to describe the outcome.
“Disappointed,” Gottlieb said.
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He and development manager Scott Grost had hoped to convert the two-story vacant building into 70 three- and four-bedroom apartments. Empty land surrounds that building, and the pair said they intended to construct a four-story building with 270 one- and two-bedroom units on one of those spaces.
A handful of neighbors came to the meeting to express concerns and opposition to the project. Janet Healy expressed concerns over recent college graduates bringing a party atmosphere to the area.
“They could all be throwing beer bottles out there and cups,” she said.
Michelle Stevens said her family had recently moved to Long Grove from a dense, urban area in China, and forecast that Market Properties would turn the area into a similarly dense neighborhood.
“We’re going to be right back there, and it’s what we moved away from,” she said. “What about our home values?”
During the meeting, Gottlieb doubted that his renters would make a garbage dump or a shanty town out of Long Grove. He said upscale but mortgage-wary Millennials would pay $2,000 for a one-bedroom and $5,000 for four.
“There is no conceived situation in which the potential tenant in our building will be the undesirables you’re envisioning,” he said.
He and Grost requested the first move in the process — a referral from the Village Board to the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals. The trustees killed the project by unanimously voting against the referral.
They cited the fact that Long Grove does not presently have any apartment buildings, the high contrast between the multi-acre homes in the area and the heavy population Market Properties hoped to attract, as well as the fact that they are in the process of rewriting their own comprehensive plan.
Trustee Bill Jacob pointed out Long Grove has never charged a property tax, which means Village Hall would take in no new revenue for all the residents it would have to plan for.
“We don’t get any benefit out of it, yet we’re probably going to have to provide services,” he said. “If it were in my backyard, I’d probably be going crazy.”
Twitter @RonnieAtPioneer