Hoffman Estates village board members Monday approved a program offering $30,000 matching grants to prospective small business owners for building improvements in the Stonington & Pembroke TIF district southeast of the Pace bus terminal at Barrington Road and Interstate 90.
Daily Herald File Photo/2020
Hoffman Estates officials are seeking prospective small businesses to transform the originally industrial area just southeast of the Pace bus terminal at Barrington Road and Interstate 90 by offering up to $30,000 in matching grants for building improvements.
Retailers, restaurants and entertainment venues are being specifically encouraged to find a home in the 124-acre tax-increment finance district where Hassell Road intersects with Pembroke and Stonington avenues.
The grant program, which is making available $100,000 through the end of the year, was approved Monday night. More funds are expected in next year’s budget as well.
The money will be generated by the TIF district started two years ago as a funding mechanism to encourage redevelopment in the area.
A site map depicts the general area of Hoffman Estates’ Stonington & Pembroke TIF district southeast of the Pace bus terminal at Barrington Road and I-90 where the village is now offering matching grants of up to $30,000 to prospective small businesses for building improvements.
Courtesy of Hoffman Estates
Hoffman Estates Economic Development Director Kevin Kramer said the village has been having some conversations with potential business owners.
But several of those would-be entrepreneurs are still kicking the tires and looking for further encouragement to pull the trigger, he recently told trustees.
“This small-business TIF grant is one that is frequently used in other TIF districts in other communities, mainly for a more downtown type of district where you have a lot of different property owners,” Kramer said.
Some industrial buildings there are ideal for maker-type businesses, such as a brewery, where products made in the back can be sold or served in the front, he added.
Permanent structural improvements to the buildings are what village officials hope grant funds would cover so future occupants would benefit as well. HVAC upgrades and window replacements were some examples cited.
Some trustees worried $30,000 wasn’t enough.
Kramer said the figure was chosen after much debate.
“We’re not looking to be your main bank,” he added. “It’s just meant to be that extra piece to help you get over the finish line per se.”
Kramer added the village can help find additional grant funds for businesses.
A TIF district works by freezing the amount of property taxes that go to local taxing bodies at the level of the first year. As properties improve and their taxes increase, the additional revenue goes to a municipally held fund for public improvements within the district.
A TIF district expires after 23 years or when its costs have been paid off.