A Highland Park couple, who earlier fought to hold onto their land, have agreed to sell it to make way for a $40 million downtown development.
Herbert and Joan Loeb will receive more than $2 million for their property in a deal with Heitman Retail Properties, developers of the proposed Renaissance Place project, according to Steve Erlod, the Loebs’ attorney.
“This agreement brings closure to a sensitive issue,” Heitman President Robert Perlmutter said in a statement. “We are all very excited about moving forward with the project.”
Controversy has surrounded the project for months. Public protest forced the developer to scale back its plans. Then, the Loebs refused to sell their property, situated in the southeast corner of the planned project.
Herbert Loeb, 70, said he agreed to sell to avoid a protracted, expensive legal battle with the City of Highland Park, which had initiated condemnation proceedings to obtain the property.
“I preferred to lease the property to them, but they more or less ground me down,” a resigned Loeb said. “I’m not going to stand in the way of progress.”
The Loebs have owned the property at 1826 2nd St. since 1987. Herbert Loeb said he wanted to remain an investor in downtown Highland Park. He and his wife lease the property to a laundromat and a nutrition store, and own a parking lot on the block.
The Loebs, residents of Highland Park for 35 years, were the only landowners in the Renaissance Place project area who had refused to sell.
City officials were eager to acquire the property because it is in a tax-increment financing district, which grants tax incentives to promote development.
The city also committed more than $9 million to infrastructure improvements to the Renaissance Place project.
The acquisition of the 15,000-square-foot property allows the development to begin on schedule, with groundbreaking to start in late summer or early fall.
The proposed Renaissance Place will occupy an area bounded by Green Bay Road, Elm Place and 2nd Street in an area already zoned for high-density use.
It is to include a Saks Fifth Avenue store and other retail space; a five-screen fine arts theater; a restaurant; office space; residential units; and an underground parking garage.
The City Council voted in late May to approve preliminary plans for the complex. At the time of the vote, city officials said the Loebs refused to negotiate a sale.
The Loebs reportedly turned down $1.4 million for land that had been appraised at $865,000, according to one city official.
In April, the city filed a condemnation petition against the Loebs. In June, the couple filed a motion asking that the suit be dismissed. The Loebs argued in the petition that buying property solely to turn over to other developers didn’t constitute a valid public purpose, said Erlod.
When negotiations with the Loebs foundered, the city asked the legislature to give it “quick-take” powers to acquire the property over the Loebs’ objections. The bill was scrapped when it was discovered its language applied not only to the Loebs’ property but also to 144 other nearby properties.
