Tinley Park Considers $300K Incentive To Bring Upscale Restaurant Concept To Boulevard At Central Station

Country Club Hills IL

04 December, 2020

11:26 AM

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From the Richard Free Press: By Jon DePaolis TINLEY PARK, Ill. — The Village of Tinley Park is considering offering approximately $300,000 in incentives to entice a local restaurateur to move into the Boulevard at Central development. The proposal — which was discussed Tuesday, Dec. 1, at the Committee of the Whole (COTW) meeting that preceded the regularly scheduled Village Board meeting — would dole out $230,000 for construction assistance to the restaurant group and as much as $70,000 in sales tax sharing over a period of three to five years, according to Tinley Park Community Development Director Kimberly Clarke. The proposed restaurant — led in part by Ed Nemec, who is an owner of Dancing Marlin in Frankfort — was described as featuring an Italian-inspired tapas menu of sharable plates. It would occupy part of the first floor of the new mixed-use building on South Street in the downtown district. Clarke said the restaurant group has planned to spend approximately $1.9 million on the development, which includes space for outdoor dining and a dining area for banquets. It also will include a separate area for carryout business. "[COVID-19] has changed a lot of how restaurants are rethinking how they need to design their business concepts," said Clarke, referencing the proposed business' revisions to its square footage to allow for the carryout section. "That is a new concept that has evolved, and I think that it will be a great concept for the area." She also said the restaurant would benefit the community by being a destination-style restaurant in the downtown that could "create a synergy" with the changing demographics of the area. Clarke also said the business could create jobs and provide sales tax revenue for the Village. "Ideally, this is a restaurant that we think will be a catalyst for our downtown," Clarke said. Nemec, who joined the conversation by phone, said the proposed restaurant will be the "jewel" of the restaurants he has created. He said the concept will include an open kitchen. The trustees voted 4-2 to forward the proposed incentive agreement onto a future Village Board agenda, with Trustee Michael Mueller voicing support for how the agreement was structured. However, two trustees voiced concerns about the amount of money being given out. Trustee Cynthia Berg said she did not know why the Village was giving out just $5,000 in incentives to restaurants already located in Tinley Park but was considering $300,000 for a new business. "It doesn't make any sense to me that the other restaurants could be struggling so, and we would go ahead and hand out this to this individual corporation, it sounds like," Berg said. Trustee Diane Galante said she loved the idea but said the Village also gave a significant incentive to the developer of the South Street project. "We have so many struggling businesses right now in our own Village," Galante said. "I would rather that we put our energy into supporting them over [giving] out an incentive. I don't think they need an incentive. It sounds like it is going to be a hit." In response, Village Manager David Niemeyer said that during the negotiations for incentives with the South Street developer, staff said they would rather consider incentive assistance for upscale dining concepts. "I think from staff's perspective, this is important because we are trying to [create] a new direction for the downtown," he said. "By bringing a business like this in, that's going to help not only South Street but all the businesses around it." Galante also said she had a problem with the Village giving out $230,000 in "upfront money" to help with the construction costs. "It would be a negative thing for me to give out upfront money," she said. "I don't believe we've done it since we've been a board. I believe this is something new now, and I'd rather stick with sharing [incentive money] after the fact with them." Ultimately, Galante said she did not believe it was an idea the board should move forward with, and Galante and Berg cast the dissenting ballots in the COTW meeting. Trustee William Brennan said he was excited about the project, but he also expressed some hesitation about giving out upfront money. "I think it's going to be a great addition to downtown Tinley," he said. "I am hesitant about the upfront money, but I think that this is something that we've been working on for so long and staff has done a good job of putting these incentives together." 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.