Des Plaines is breaking out its checkbook and buying more rundown commercial property on Lee Street for future redevelopment.
The city council on Monday agreed to purchase a vacant restaurant building at 1062 Lee St. and its parking lot for $675,000.
The building, just north of Walnut Avenue in the 3rd Ward, has been vacant since Sahil Grill & Lounge closed in August 2023. It previously had been occupied by Five Boroughs Pizza and Giuseppe’s La Cantina.
The property has fallen into disrepair, running up thousands of dollars in fines increasing by $200 a day, documents indicate.
The building will be knocked down, and the roughly three-quarters-acre site could be repurposed as open space with a gateway sign for drivers headed north into the downtown area, city officials said.
“I can only imagine this will enhance the attractiveness of the entire corridor over there,” Mayor Andrew Goczkowski said Monday. “It seems like this can only be helpful.”
Des Plaines officials plan to raze the former restaurant building at 1062 Lee St. The city may turn the land into green space.
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The council will consider the property’s potential uses down the road, Community and Economic Development Director Jeff Rogers said.
The property was listed for sale earlier this year at $759,000, documents indicate, but it was appraised at $650,000. It accrued more than $18,000 in fines from code violations, City Manager Dorothy Wisniewski said in a memo.
The purchase will settle the fines.
The city has been buying up land on and near Lee Street recently.
In January, the council agreed to buy two buildings at 1096 Lee St. for $420,000. As is the case with the former restaurant property, that site had a history of city code violations and fines.
The buildings should be demolished this fall, a spokesperson said.
The city purchased a neighboring commercial building at 1177 E. Walnut Ave. last year from the Cook County Land Bank Authority for $150,000 and razed it.
The money for the latest land buy will come from a special fund that uses property tax revenue to raise money for public improvements along Lee and Oakton streets. That’s where the cash for the others came from, too.
Sean Oskerka
Third Ward Alderman Sean Oskerka said he’s “super excited” about the latest purchase and plans for the area. That part of the city “is just dirty and falling apart,” he said.
“It couldn’t be a better start to a great future for us,” Oskerka said.
Fifth Ward Alderman Tom Merlin was enthusiastic about the proposal, too. Buying the property now is better than letting it sit vacant for a decade, he said.
“The goal is to make Des Plaines look good,” Merlin said.
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