As a panel of Lombard merchants, residents, preservationists and officials begins to weed out six development proposals for the vintage DuPage Theater and its downtown property, the determining factor will likely be money.
“I think the big thing is trying to find out which is going to have the best guarantees,” Village President William Mueller said.
With four developers interested in saving the theater in some form as part of their proposals for the 2.5-acre site, Mueller said, there is hope that the theater can be restored.
“I think we have a 50-50 chance,” he said.
In its request for proposals from developers, the village had encouraged a “creative approach to redeveloping the parcel, using all of the existing theater facility.”
With the right proposal, a developer who plans to save the theater could have the shuttered movie palace at Main Street and Parkside Avenue for free, officials have said. A developer also could receive grants or other financial incentives from the village to offset costs of the project. The theater is within a tax increment financing district.
The 14,000-square-foot theater was built in the late 1920s and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. The site also includes seven storefronts and 10 second-floor apartments.
An ad-hoc committee charged with reviewing development plans and recommending a proposal to the Village Board is expected to begin rating the plans and narrowing the pool of proposals shortly.
Two proposals call for demolishing the theater, with one developer seeking to build a stand-alone pharmacy on the site and another calling for it to be cleared for condominiums.
Mueller acknowledged that “the main goal was to restore the theater. As long as you have other uses that are in essence saving the theater, those certainly would take priority over any of the other proposals.”
“It doesn’t rule anyone out, but your priority is going to be the ones who have taken interest in restoring the theater.”
Village officials also will consider the economic viability of the proposed projects.
Two of the submitted proposals involve a performing arts center and indicate that developers will ask for about $8 million in financial help from the village.
Arlington Heights-based Banbury Properties and Chicago-based Preferred Development have submitted separate proposals to restore and transform the theater into a performing arts center, and to build condominium complexes with retail stores adjacent to the structure.
“Although they both are restoring the theater to a use that certainly would be acceptable to the community, the big question is how do you find $8 million to do the project?” Mueller said, adding that the village staff will be looking into that issue soon.
“We’ve said all the way along that we do not want to pass these costs on to the taxpayers.”
Another bidder, Lincoln Property Co., has indicated that developers would request cash incentives from the village, ranging from $1 million to $4 million. Among its options, which all include the construction of high-end rental housing, Lincoln has proposed a general renovation of the theater to a 1950s condition; conversion of the theater to an alternate use, such as a fitness center or conference center; or transforming the theater building into retail use.
Another proposal calling for restoration of the theater building, to be used as a community arts center, has been submitted by Lombard-based Maple Investment and Development Corp., along with Arcon Associates. Aside from the donation of the theater and the downtown property, the developers are estimating they will need village assistance totaling $1.65 million.
Officials also will check to see how the proposed developments adjacent to the theater might affect the surrounding area.
