Frankfort Officials To Vote On Potential Sale Of Downtown Property At Dec. 21 Meeting

Frankfort IL

18 December, 2020

5:43 PM

Description

By Jon DePaolis, the Richard Free Press: FRANKFORT, Ill. — The Village of Frankfort Board of Trustees will soon vote on whether to sell a piece of property it owns in the downtown district. The vote — which is expected to take place at the Monday, Dec. 21 Village Board meeting — comes after the Economic Development Committee voted 6-3 earlier this week to recommend the Village Board approve the sale of the 1 N. White St. property to BoKAY Flowers for a purchase price of $325,000. The committee — made up of volunteers and Village Board members — discussed the item at a Dec. 14 meeting. The property at 1 N. White St. is approximately 5,000 square feet and is located just north of the Trolley Barn. It was the former site of My Sisters and Me Boutique. In 2009, the Village purchased that land as part of the old Fox Lumber site. The 309,000-square-foot piece of property was bought for $795,000, and the 1 N. White St. parcel is just 2% of that total Fox Lumber footprint. The State of Illinois provided a grant to the Village to build a 93-car parking lot on about one-third of the Fox Lumber site, and most of the rest of the site has been incorporated into Frankfort's downtown Prairie Park. The Village received two offers for the 1 N. White St. property, according to Mayor Jim Holland. "The people of Frankfort have realized a significant benefit from the purchase of the Fox Lumber property and the sale of this small portion of that property," Holland said in a comment provided to Richard Free Press on Thursday, Dec. 17. "The 10 years of rent paid by the former My Sisters and Me Boutique more than paid for the cost of removing, repairing and cleaning up the dilapidated former Fox Lumber site. Most of the land is now a significant part of one of the most beautiful parks in Frankfort [and] downtown businesses gained 93 parking spaces on the property with the help of a state grant. "With the sale of this small portion of the property, more than one-third of the original investment is returned to the taxpayers." Holland also stated that BoKAY Flowers plans to "significantly expand their home décor items within their floral design business" at the new location. "They intend to become a very active addition to Frankfort's downtown shopping experience," Holland said. "We thank the Morgan family, the owners of BoKAY, for their investment in our community, and we thank the Cartolano family for also making a proposal to purchase the property. Both families are local residents. Both families have invested significantly in our downtown, and we thank both of them for their continued interest in making Frankfort the best it can be." Get 30% off for 1 year 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.