More than $6.50 million could be headed into Naperville coffers if it sells 12.55 acres of city-owned property at 103rd Street and Route 59 to Lifetime Fitness.
The Naperville City Council Tuesday is expected to vote on an agreement under which LTF Real Estate will buy the land for $12 a square foot for a total of $6.56 million. Seven positive votes are required for the sale to be approved.
LTF Real Estate plans to build a fitness and recreational sports facility at the site.
The two closest Lifetime Fitness properties are at 28141 Diehl Road in Warrenville and near Weber Road and Interstate 55 in Romeoville.
Bill Novack, director of transportation, engineering and development, said in a memo to the council that the city was approached last year by the company, which expressed strong interest in buying the property.
The negotiations, he said, netted an offer of $12 per square foot, the highest price ever offered for the property.
The city purchased 40 acres, which became known as the South 40, at the southeast corner of 103rd Street and Route 59 in the 1980s for utility uses, fire protection and possibly satellite facilities for various departments.
Over the years, the city built a fire station, an elevated water tank and water reservoir on the land. No satellite facilities were constructed since other departments preferred to remain centralized.
Wheatland Township also purchased two acres for $700,000 for its road district garage and township office buildings.
That left the city with 22 acres of surplus land it no longer needs, Novack said.
Although the city has received several unsolicited offers over the years, Novack said none were of interest or sufficient value.
In 2021, Naperville asked developers to submit proposals for building affordable housing for seniors and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities on a portion of the site.
After months of deliberation and negotiations, the council last month agreed to sell 4.65 acres to Gorman & Co. for the housing project.
With Lifetime buying 12.65 acres, that leaves roughly four acres left for the city to sell.
Novack said the agreement with Lifetime includes a provision under which the company must be given the right of first refusal to purchase the remaining land as a safeguard to protect the company against noncomplementary uses adjacent to its fitness facility.
Because the property fronts on Route 59, the land is zoned for commercial use, which would allow a fitness facility to be built there, Novack said.
The retail and the big box market is saturated in this area, and a health club business would offer an alternate use, he said.
The city benefits from the sale because the developed land is put on the property tax rolls and the city doesn’t have to continue paying the costs of ownership, such as maintenance and liability.
