After years of deliberation, the Park Ridge City Council has shown a willingness to adopt a new development incentive plan. This plan involves using city resources, including money, to attract a development proposed for 1440 Higgins Road. The Dec. 2 City Council meeting did not result in a firm vote, but it did gain enough support to start drafting a formal economic incentive package for future consideration.

Key Features and Benefits

The proposed plan will cost the city approximately $4.6 million in shared tax money, tax abatements, fee waivers, and more. If the project fully develops, it will bring a Hilton-brand hotel with 112 rooms to the area, generating property, hotel, and sales tax revenues from visitors who will dine and shop locally. The project was initially delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A previous hotel proposal marked the second planned development of the property, which was approved in June. However, the developers later presented a more expensive request that was rejected. Now, MDSA Properties has a new plan that requires less from the city and is eager to start work on a Tru by Hilton hotel.In addition to what the developer has asked of Park Ridge, they have also requested property tax relief from Cook County. Other incentive requests include hotel occupancy tax sharing for up to 12 years and waiving of permit fees for the project, as well as relief from stormwater detention requirements.Councilwoman Harmony Herrington expressed concerns about waiving permit fees, stating that it seemed overly generous. She believes that the abatement schedule should be specific to hotels and that providing advantages to certain developers is inequitable.According to Hotel Appraisers and Advisors, independent hotel advisors to Park Ridge, almost every hotel in the county receives some form of tax and local incentives to support their projects in the initial stages. The hope is that future hotel tax revenue and additional tourism spending will compensate for the initial costs.Hilton franchisee Amin Lakhani emphasized the need to finalize the tax abatement agreement as it is necessary to begin demolishing the current structure. According to his timeline, the tear-down will start next year in late winter, followed by construction the following spring.City Council members did not provide formal approval at the Monday night meeting but generally seemed receptive to the proposal. City staff is now tasked with drafting a formal economic incentive agreement for council consideration.City Manager Joe Gilmore supports the proposal, stating that it makes economic sense and that virtually every hotel in the county receives similar local benefits. He believes that without these incentives, many hotel projects would not be viable. Sharing the occupancy tax revenue means the city will have at least some new revenue, along with the additional spending from visitors.Even so, not all council members were in favor of all the conditions. Some wanted assurances that the developer could not obtain the incentive deals and then sell the land and development to another company for a different project and make more money. City Council attorney Michael Durkin will look into whether any of the development incentives can be transferred.Mayor Marty Maloney took an informal poll, and most on the council favored some form of development incentive plan. Although it was not an overwhelming majority, it showed a preference for moving forward.The council is expected to revisit the issue later for further consideration.