Elk Grove Village trustees on Tuesday did more than just talk about the long-planned Vue project at Arlington Heights Road and Higgins Road. They cleared the way for demolition and environmental cleanup at the former Elk Grove Woods Plaza, a key step that shifts the site from its retail reboot into a residential buildout with a large apartment building and townhomes. The move also lines up with the village’s plan for a new pedestrian bridge that will connect the development directly to Busse Woods.
The trustees approved an amendment to the development agreement that, according to Journal & Topics, allows Vue LA LLC, a subsidiary of Wingspan Development Group, to start demolition and environmental remediation before the final property closing between the village and the developer is wrapped up. Officials said the tweak is meant to keep construction momentum going while the last contractual details are hammered out.
Two new retail buildings along Higgins Road are already open and now house longtime tenants that moved over from the aging strip center, including Jarosch Bakery, Tensuke Market, Vini’s Pizza and 7 Mile Cycles, the Daily Herald reports. The developer told village staff that expanded environmental testing tied to a former dry cleaners site, along with areas of unsuitable soil, led to over-excavation and higher costs. Wingspan received a No Further Remediation letter from the Illinois EPA while seeking additional TIF support to cover the cleanup and grading work.
Bridge, designs and next steps
Elk Grove Village’s project page shows renderings of the planned pedestrian bridge stretching across Arlington Heights Road with ADA switchbacks, a lookout facing Busse Woods, and a two-way path for both pedestrians and cyclists that will link the Vue directly to the forest preserve trail system. Public documents also show the village and developer subdividing the roughly 10-acre parcel into separate residential and commercial lots so both sides of the project can move ahead in phases, according to Elk Grove Village.
Photos published with local coverage highlight four electric vehicle chargers already installed in a new parking lot on the south side of Higgins Road, a small but very visible sign that the property is being outfitted for both retail customers and future residents as work continues, Journal & Topics notes. The chargers underscore the developer’s effort to layer in modern infrastructure as the new retail buildings fill up.
What to expect
Village officials and the developer say demolition, remediation and utility work will roll out once permits are approved and the site is fully prepared, and the village has adjusted its TIF assistance to help absorb cleanup costs that came in higher than expected. Residents should expect construction activity to ramp up in the coming weeks as The Vue transitions from its retail phase into the residential buildout, stakeholders told the Daily Herald.
