Orland Park To Keep Programs Created To Offer Businesses Relief During COVID-19

Orland Park IL

25 June, 2021

4:17 PM

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By Jon DePaolis, Richard Free Press: ORLAND PARK, Ill. — The Village of Orland Park is planning to continue some of the programs it created as a way to provide relief to businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. The Village Board of Trustees members voiced support to keep the economic development programs Monday, June 21, during the Committee of the Whole meeting. The programs that will continue on include: nontraditional sales tax sharing in an amount not to exceed 50% of the generated sales tax for a maximum of 10 years; the Back-fill Vacant Restaurant Incentive, which grants a sales tax share not to exceed 50% for a maximum of 10 years; the New Hotel Incentive Program, which grants a 40% share of the Village's 5% transient occupancy tax generated for a maximum period of 10 years; the Orland Park Commercial Impact Program, which gives a 25% reduction on permit and impact fees and a 25% reduction on water tap fees; and the Advanced Manufacturing Incentive, which grants businesses investing a minimum of $5 million a partial property tax exemption not to exceed 50% of the Village-specific property tax for a maximum period of 10 years. Orland Park Economic Development Coordinator Alex Scharf said the incentive programs were created in June 2020 to assist the business community during the pandemic. One example was Stan's Donuts being approved for a Back-fill Vacant Restaurant Incentive. Additionally, he said staff proposed to create two new programs: the Commercial Office Incentive Program, which allows an office facility owner who is investing a minimum of $2 million to either expand his or her property or bring a new property to town to receive a partial property tax exemption from the Village in an amount not to exceed 50% of the Village-specific property tax for a maxiumum period of 10 years; and the Outdoor Dining Expansion Program, which will grant a sales tax sharing agreement not to exceed 50% of the Village's share of any newly generated sales taxes above the business' last three years of annual sales tax for a period not to exceed 10 years. The outdoor dining program also will waive 100% of development service fees and will reduce the parking space requirements by 20%. "I think the restaurants are seeing that it has been well received," Mayor Keith Pekau said of the outdoor dining program. "So, it's giving them the opportunity to expand and make it permanent, so they don't have to go through [a process] every year with the tents." Pekau also said the Village has reached out to the school district boards of education and the fire district regarding the office incentive program. "Because obviously our property taxes are less than 7% of the overall property tax," Pekau noted. "The real dollars for a business are from the two school districts and the fire district, which make up almost 80% in total. From all of the board members I've spoken to, it's been very well received, because they recognize that nothing from nothing is nothing. In this case, they'd be getting 50% of something." The mayor said the Village will continue those conversations with the other property tax-collecting boards to try to set up future intergovernmental agreements for the incentive program. Overall, he said he likes the programs that were created. "I think we've had a lot of success with these programs," Pekau said. "I like the new addition with the commercial office incentive. Obviously, we would like to always be performance-based, but with commercial offices, they don't generate sales tax. So, we needed to think outside of the box." Trustee Brian Riordan also said he was in favor of continuing the programs. "I think it's great," he said. "I want to be as aggressive as possible." Richard Free Press is a one-stop destination for the news that most affects you, the southwest suburban resident. Be an informed citizen of the town you live in and love.