ROMEOVILLE:
A Sleepy Town Waking Up

Five years ago, a drive through Romeoville was like a drive through the corn fields of central Illinois. Today, new office buildings and manufacturing companies have taken the place of 4,000 acres of land.

Although, most people are familiar with the development boom that has taken place in the western suburbs, Romeoville's story is more remarkable because it happened so quickly. One reason for this speedy transformation from quiet town to economic boomtown is attributed to the dedication and determination of Romeoville's elected officials and staff.

This hard-working group had a tough task — to attract developers to a small town which was more often than not referred to as a town near Lockport or Lemont. What could Romeoville possibly offer that couldn't be found in other town-is?

"What partially helped was that all of the vacant lands were being absorbed in the western suburbs and the only way to expand was south. Other things we offered to potential developers was our close proximity to major highways and the city, affordable housing, and good village services," said Romeoville's Village Manager, Linda Lindquist.

In 1983, 70,000 square feet of development occurred, most of that was industrial. In 1988-89 that figure jumped to a remarkable 1.2 million square feet. Included in that figure was industrial, light manufacturing and service-oriented companies.

"We view all of this growth as significant, and I envision that growth as moving like a circle. First comes the economic growth, then comes the jobs, then housing, and then commercial development," Mayor John Strobbe commented.

One thing that can't be overlooked in all of this growth, is the significant impact the construction of the Weber Road/I-55 interchange had.

"We kept hearing that the interchange would be constructed. We heard that for a few years and we knew what kind of impact it would have on our community and what kind of growth opportunities it would give us, we took a proactive stance. We pushed, and pushed, and pushed, until we got the backing from the state, and private corporations," said Mayor Strobbe.

The push for the interchange, which is slated to be complete by the end of this summer, started in early 1987. There were tireless meetings between state transportation officials, Romeoville officials, and other community leaders to determine what type of interchange and how much it would cost, and who was going to pay tor it.

"I'm not sure how many people realize what it took to get this interchange going. It involved intergovernmental cooperations, state participation, and assistance from the private sector," Strobbe commented.

As soon as word got out about the $14 million interchange, major real estate corporations began scooping up land in all four quadrants of the interchange.

AMLI Realty of Chicago purchased nearly 1,000 acres located in and around the northeast quadrant of the interchange. AMLI spokesperson, Eric Friedler said 130 acres has already been touted as Phase I of Windham Lakes Business Park, a combination office and commercial development.

"We feel Windham Lakes fits well into our whole development scheme for that area. Of course, the main reason for the purchase was the new interchange, but the Romeoville Staff was cooperative and very responsive to our needs," Friedler said.

The interchange has already attracted development projections in excess of $1 billion. Another major development in the interchange area is the Carillon adult subdivision, a 1,477-acre self-sufficient community. Although Carillon remains unincorporated, Romeoville will benefit from the income received through water and sewer sales, jobs for residents, attraction of retail businesses, and annexation of single-family homes to be built by Carillon.

Romeoville expects the interchange area to be known as the chrome and glass corridor. They anticipate construction of corporate offices, research firms, lodging facilities, and restaurants.

Sherman Baarstad, another developer who has in-

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vested in Romeoville, said he was familiar with the area and felt the village offered good available labor, both skilled and unskilled and good village services.

"Another reason was the land prices. They were extremely competitive with other areas nearby. I looked at Romeoville, and right away felt that it was going to be an important development area," Baarstad said.

Baarstad has already built one successful business park — Bluff Trails a 21-acre development that sold out in less than a year. He is also working on construction of Phase I and II of the Ridgewood Business Park, a 50-acre commercial/industrial development that is also nearly sold out.

Baarstad is not the only one who views Romeoville as an "important development area," so too does the financial firm, Peat, Marwick and Main. Their study, commissioned by the village, indicates that by 1992 more than two million square feet per year will be constructed in Romeoville.

What is significant about the projection is that it involves small-to-medium sized manufacturing and industrial facilities (10,000 to 40,000 square feet) and does not include growth estimates for office, commercial lodging facilities and larger commercial users.

Since 1987, nearly 200 new businesses have set their "sites" in Romeoville. Included in that figure is the village's first hotel. Super I, Kehe Foods Distribution Center, McKesson Corporation, Essen Nutrition, and the community's first funeral home, Serenity Chapels. A number of service-oriented businesses have also located in Romeoville, inlcuding a car wash, deli, and restaurants.

Economic growth has been well received by village staff and it's residents. It keeps homes and village services affordable, and now provides residents a choice on where to shop and even where to live.

Since 1979, there had not been one request for a new home building permit. In 1987, that all changed, thanks to the efforts of, in part, Mayor Strobbe. Strobbe, along with two business partners purchased land along Route 53 to construct Pine Trails subdivision, a 24 single-family home development.

"What we were hearing from our residents was that they wanted to stay in Romeoville, but their families were getting so large that they needed more room," Strobbe explained.

Although the housing project was small, Strobbe believes it was the catalyst that got other developers interested in Romeoville. In 1988, Rich Falbo, President of Pavilion Development, purchased 25 acres for the build-out of the Honeytree Townhome Development. Falbo took over after construction was halted in the late 70s after the previous developer went bankrupt.

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"We really highlighted the fact that the development is 35 minutes away from Chicago, and very accessible to the northwest suburbs as a result of the new 1-55 tollway," Falbo said.

Sales have been brisk since the first new homes became available in 1988. Phase I is already sold out and Phase II, Meadows of Honeytree is just beginning. Falbo feels that the 262 townhomes are selling so well because "people are getting quality-constructed homes for an affordable price." Honeytree townhomes are priced from $84,000 to $100,000.

In early Spring, Falbo expects to begin construction on a 20-acre development that will offer 70 single-family homes, ranging in price from $120,000 to $150,000.

Plans are also being reviewed for the build-out of Poplar Ridge, another Romeoville subdivision that wasn't completed in the mid-70s because the developer went bankrupt. Also being considered is Lakewood Estates, a single-family development to be located off of Route 53 and Normantown Road.

Even those residents who are not interested in a new home are reaping the benefits of the economic boom. Median price home values have increased from $46,700 in 1980 to nearly $75,000 today. The vacancy rate for existing housing was at four percent in 1984 and in 1989 that figure was down to one percent.

"As I had mentioned, we were assuming that in this circle of development, next would be new housing and we were right, I expect more growth in this area," Strobbe said.

If Strobbe's circle theory is correct, the next big area of growth will be in commercial development. Both Strobbe and his staff expect significant development to take place after recent negotiations with companies that they are defining as "big players." But for now, all are extremely pleased with what has occurred so far.

"For those who haven't seen our village lately, I encourage them to come by. I think they will be surprised and extremely impressed," Strobbe said. •

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