Restaurants & Bars
Clarendon Hills Eatery Falls Through After Rejection
A closely divided board turned down a subsidy deal for the proposed restaurant.
CLARENDON HILLS, IL – A restaurateur on Monday said he would abandon a planned family-style restaurant in Clarendon Hills after the Village Board rejected a subsidy deal.
As part of the agreement, the village was to give him $265,000 of a nearly $600,000 project to refurbish the properties at 27 and 29 S. Prospect Ave.
The money would have come from the downtown tax increment financing district, or TIF, which is designed to spur development. The idea was that the restaurant would bring the village far more tax income than the subsidy.
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The sticking point was allowing Prospect Tavern three parking spaces on Prospect Avenue for outdoor dining. The original proposal was for five spots.
The owner, Chase Lofti, had already agreed to the reduction, but said outdoor dining was crucial to the business.
Find out what's happening in Hinsdale-Clarendon Hillsfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Voting against the deal were Village President Eric Tech and trustees Ralph DeAngelis, John Weicher and Denise Kavuliak. The supporters were Mark Peterson, Chris Lang and Omar Chaudhry.
A month ago, the board was evenly split on the issue, with Tech abstaining. At the time, Tech suggested a delay, so the village could discuss the issue with other businesses.
In the debate, DeAngelis said the provision for parking spots failed to match up with the village's other outdoor dining efforts.
"This is a very generous TIF proposal," he said.
Tech said he agreed with DeAngelis' points.
Just after the vote, Lofti, the owner, left the meeting room. Outside Village Hall, he told Patch he would no longer open a restaurant in Clarendon Hills. He said another downtown restaurant has four spots for outdoor dining.
He said he agreed to go to three spots to show good faith.
"I'm not going to do it without the parking," Lofti said. "I would have brought a lot of revenue and tax dollars into this community. I spent a lot of time and effort on this to bring something the town needs."
He said residents will have to continue going to Hinsdale or Westmont for his type of family-style restaurant.
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