Lincolnwood’s Village Board has reviewed a series of concepts intended to redevelop the financially troubled Lincolnwood Town Center Mall and position it for a stronger economic future.
On March 1, in the second part of a three-phase process, village staff presented trustees with three concepts for re-imagining the shopping center. This followed an initial presentation to trustees last December.
The outlook for Lincolnwood Town Center, which is on Touhy Avenue, has been uncertain since its acquisition last year by an investment firm after the mall entered foreclosure last year amid financial problems.
Last fall, the village formed an advisory committee of various village boards and commission members, plus representatives of the mall’s ownership and management group charged with re-envisioning the future of the property, according to village officials.
“What we are trying to do is get comprehensive thinking from a lot of parties at this point in the process so what we can end up with is a plan that can be supported by the village,” Lincolnwood Development Manager Doug Hammel said at the meeting. “(Then it would be) presented and marketed to the development community as a product we think will be beneficial to the village and supported by the development community.”
Representatives of a land use planning firm presented trustees three options for the 27-acre site, ranging from redeveloping around current anchor stores such as Kohl’s and The Room Place to a mass overhaul of the space including demolishing many of the existing buildings, noted Community Development Director Scott Mangum.
The first concept would preserve the existing Kohl’s and Room Place building as well as the retaining walls, but redevelop the space around them and add buildings in areas on the existing parking lots, Mangum explained.
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The second concept would feature a redeveloped Room Place, would preserve Kohl’s and its existing wall with new roadway circulation and the creation of new greenways.
Finally, the third concept would have a full redevelopment of the mall but would also have development of the adjacent northeast industrial property including manufacturing and industrial uses.
All three concepts offer possibilities for a mixed-use site and commercial uses plus some residential use, but trustees indicated they preferred a small residential component.
“The reality is we want to help the development appeal to the widest group of developers that might find this with their range of abilities,” Mayor Jesal Patel said.
With the review of the broad concepts now completed, next steps include a public open house with the goal of collecting feedback from stakeholders leading to a refinement of the concepts.
In addition, the land use planning firm will now create a fiscal impact tool to determine the financial impact, which is the difference between the projected costs and revenues for the redevelopment proposal, Mangum said.
The village may then receive a final plan in late April or early May, according to village documents.
“This is a very important first step we are taking,” Patel said.