Huntley trustees approve development proposals

The Huntley Village Board has given approval to a possible developer of the Catty property and explored the possible addition of a new warehouse off Interstate 90.

Trustees approved a resolution at Thursday’s meeting choosing True North Properties as the group officials will begin development conversations with regarding the long vacant Catty property the village has been hoping redevelop.

The property located at 11117 S. Church St. has been vacant since 2006 when the Catty Corp. left Huntley. The village bought the property in 2017 for $425,000 with the goal of incorporating it into its long-term plan to redevelop the downtown area.

True North is a property management company based in Wauconda, according to the village administrator. Village documents indicate True North’s proposal to the village was to create 30 to 50 apartment units on the Catty site.

Huntley officials asked potential developers to submit letters of interest by July 30. Three groups, including True North, expressed interest in the site. Village officials will now begin discussions with True North about selling the property and its development plans, according to the resolution passed by trustees Thursday.

It’s not clear how True North’s plan incorporates the existing 100-year-old building on the property.

The village initially began seeking interest from possible developers in 2019, but plans were put on hold until July of this year because of uncertainty surrounding the pandemic.

Huntley trustees also reviewed a potential warehouse development off I-90 in Thursday’s meeting, although no action was taken on the development.

The plan brought by Melrose Park-based Universe Carrier, a trucking company, proposes construction of a new warehouse off Freeman Road next to the current Weber Global Distribution Center owned by the grill manufacture, Weber. According to village documents, the Huntley warehouse would become Universe Carrier’s new corporate and logistics headquarters as well as a warehouse and maintenance hub for the company.

The company is proposing two phases of construction. The first would include a 100,000 square foot building with office space and docks and parking for tractor trailers. It also includes construction of a fuel and weigh station for the company to performance truck maintenance at the location. The building would be screened by evergreen trees to keep the truck parking area out of view, according to documents.

The second phase of construction would be building a 137,880-square-foot building, also primarily used for parking and dock space.

While I-90 is located on the property’s south end, it would not be accessible from the facility, drawings show.

The plan proposes combining new open lots for construction, which needs further approval from the village.

Editor’s note: This article previously reported that the company involved was from Traverse City and specialized in short-term and vacation rentals. That is incorrect. The company involved is based in Wauconda.