Plans for a 204 acre industrial and commercial development east of Orchard Road on Montgomery’s west side will be on the agenda for consideration during the next meeting of the village’s Planning and Zoning Commission at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 2 at Village Hall.

Karis Acquisitions, LLC of Schaumburg is seeking village approval to subdivide, rezone and develop the vacant parcel near the southeast corner of Orchard Road and Caterpillar Drive as the Karis Center for Commerce.

As proposed, the project would be developed in three phases beginning with the construction of a 500,000 square foot building on the southern portion of the property just west of the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe railway tracks. The building would have an adjoining rail yard and house Ravago, a Belgium-based firm that is active in polymer and chemical distribution, plastic recycling and compounding of plastic and elastomeric raw materials.

In a memo, Sonya Abt, the village’s community development coordinator, noted that subsequent development phases for the project would yield a 300,000 square foot addition to the building along with a second 300,000 square foot building and a 1.2 million square foot warehouse/distribution facility with outdoor storage.

The project also includes a 5.75 acre parcel zoned B-2 for retail business use along the east side of Orchard Road, south of Caterpillar Drive.

Traffic access to the site would be off an extension of Galena Road east from Orchard Road and from the construction of a new road, Karis Way, to extend from Caterpillar Drive south onto the property.

In addition to its location within village limits, the project site is within the boundaries of Oswego SD308, the Oswego Fire Protection District and Oswego Public Library District. Portions of the property are also located in the Oswegoland and Fox Valley park districts.

According to information provided by Karis to the village, the initial Ravago facility would be similar to another facility operated by the firm in Medina, Ohio, and function as the firm’s primary plastic resin distribution center to serve customers in the Chicago region.

An estimated 80-90 employees would work at the facility with jobs including customer service, packaging/production operators, maintenance technicians and forklift operators. Wages would range from $20 to $30 for hourly employees, while management salaries would range from $60,000 to $170,000.

The initial phase of the project has an estimated value of $75 million to $90 million and an anticipated operational date pending village approvals of July 31, 2024.

Karis is seeking village approval for a planned unit development (PUD) agreement for the project, the rezoning of a portion of the property from B-2 retail business to M-2 manufacturing and a special use permit.

In her memo, Abt noted that the proposed development is consistent with the intent of the village’s comprehensive land use plan. Village staff recommends approval of the requested rezoning, PUD agreement and special use permit subject to a series of conditions, including the finalizing of sanitary sewer plans for the site with the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District and working with the Oswego Fire Protection District to address concerns over fire hydrant locations and access.

The Planning and Zoning Commission will render an advisory recommendation on the project to the Village Board. The board will, in turn, cast the final ballot.