The Village of Hoffman Estates continues to see steady growth in several areas including retail, industrial, hospitality and various types of infrastructure improvements. The continual efforts of village came to fruition in 2017 as a variety projects were completed. A priority for many years, the construction of the Barrington Road interchange on I-90 opened at the end of 2017 with the Pace Park-n-Ride expected to open in spring 2018. Also, after many years of searching and courting, an Ace Hardware opened again in Hoffman Estates. Additionally, TRUMPF Technology Center opened in September and continues the trend of advanced manufacturers finding a new home in Hoffman Estates along I-90.
One of the most significant projects to be completed in 2017 was the widening of I-90 and the opening of all four legs of the Barrington Road interchange. In 2013, the village partnered with the Illinois Tollway and Illinois Department of Transportation in improving the Barrington Road interchange on I-90 to provide full access (from east and west bound). Design began in 2014 with construction beginning in 2015 in conjunction with the rebuilding and widening of I-90. The village worked with Pace to incorporate a Park-n-Ride at the interchange. Tollway construction activity on the tollway interchange took place throughout 2017, with completion at the end of the year. Construction of the Park-n-Ride pedestrian bridge over I-90 was also completed in 2017, with Pace bus service set to begin in spring/summer 2018, ultimately connecting to the CTA Blue Line station in Rosemont in 23 minutes then to downtown Chicago.
Hoffman Estates celebrated the opening of many retailers to the community, some for the first time and some coming back after too much time away. For many years, residents requested the village bring a hardware store back to the community. In August 2017, Ace Hardware opened their doors in a long-vacant space at Golf and Higgins Roads. “The opening the new Ace Hardware fulfilled a long-standing goal. A local hardware store provides convenience and ease for our home owners,” said Hoffman Estates Mayor Bill McLeod. Additionally, Woodfield Acura unveiled their new facility while maintaining the existing site as a pre-owned dealership.
Redevelopment of commercial properties on the village’s east side continued at a rapid pace. The village negotiated both a redevelopment and a land sale agreement with the Sterling Organization to redevelop the Hoffman Plaza Shopping Center and sell village-owned land for adjacent development. Burlington then opened in the first phase of redevelopment at the center as co-anchor to the existing Jewel-Osco. The shopping center owner plans to complete Phase II in 2018-19.
In addition to retail, the TRUMPF Technology Center opened in September, adding 50 new high paying, high-tech jobs to the market while bringing the ancillary benefit to hotels and restaurants from their out-of-town customers. The Technology Center is primarily a demonstration lab and showroom for the high-tech metal cutting lasers used by advanced manufacturers today. Near the new TRUMPF facility the village has the opportunity, through a partnership with Cook County, for Phase I engineering to start for a new bicycle path on Central Road. The path will connect the new Pace Park-n-Ride on Central Road with the Paul Douglas Forest Preserve path system.
Residential development continued to surge and the village performed an increasing number of plan reviews and building inspections for subdivisions such as Bergman Estates, Devonshire Woods, Amber Meadows, Airdrie Estates and renovations at the Enclave Apartments. More than 250 single-family homes have been built or are under construction at those sites allowing new residents to move into Hoffman Estates.
The Village’s 2017 Street Revitalization project spent nearly $6 million in new and existing revenues. Eight streets were reconstructed and another 18 streets were resurfaced as part of this village-wide project. The village also contracted for street surface patching and crack sealing projects in 2017 which will help to extend the useful life of village streets.
In 2017, the Sears Centre achieved near record revenue by almost doubling event income and experiencing record ticket sales to nearly 153,000 customers with several events achieving sold-out status. The Chicago Bulls developmental league team (Windy City Bulls) completed their inaugural season in March 2017 and continued to enjoy increasing attendance as their second season got off to a successful start in November.
“This partnership has been a natural fit from the beginning. The village has been extremely pleased with the success of the team thus far and it appears Bulls representatives are equally impressed with the way our community and surrounding areas have embraced them and the Windy City Bulls franchise,” McLeod said.
Cirque du Soleil also returned to the Sears Centre in 2017, joining longstanding annual events such as Sesame Street Live, Monster Trucks, Professional Championship Bull riding and 17 graduation ceremonies. Music concerts, a sold-out IHSA Super Sectional basketball game, USA volleyball and gymnastics competitions, and community events filled out the calendar (104 total event days). The sixth annual Northwest Fourth Fest, the largest free Independence Day celebration in the northwest suburbs again attracted tens of thousands visitors over the multi-day event. Many of these events will be back again in 2018 along with other great attractions!
In addition to continued growth throughout the community, the village’s police, fire and health and human services departments continue to provide exceptional service to the community. “These departments work hard to ensure their teams are providing the best possible service to our residents,” McLeod said.
The village has grown its use of social media through broadcasting events on Facebook Live, and uses other tools like the Citizen newsletter, its website and other platforms to inform the community about exciting events and relevant programs and services.
“Keeping our residents and visitors, as well as our potential and existing business owners, up to date on Village business is vitally important,” McLeod said. “The village’s website will receive a much-needed makeover in the next several months; ultimately providing users with an enhanced, more efficient experience.”
For more information about village programs and events, visit www.hoffmanestates.org.