Village Board Approves Reclassification Of Duvan Drive Property

TINLEY PARK, IL — The Village of Tinley Park voted to adopt a resolution that supports the Cook County Class 6B incentive, which will reduces the tax assessment ratio for the chosen area on Duvan Drive for ten years.

According to the Cook County Assessor's office, a Class 6B classification is designed to help create industrial development throughout the county, by offering a real estate tax incentive for the development of new industrial facilities, rehabilitating industrial structures and reutilizing abandoned buildings.

The Assessor's office said the goal of Class 6b is to attract new industry, stimulate expansion and retention of an existing industry, and increase employment opportunities. Under the incentive, qualifying industrial real estate is eligible for construction or rehabilitation under the following guidelines:

• The real estate is used primarily for "industrial purposes"
• There is either (a) new construction, (b) substantial rehabilitation, or (c) substantial reoccupancy of "abandoned" property.
• An Eligibility Application and supporting documents have been timely filed with the Office
  of the Assessor according to deadlines as set forth in the "What Must Be Filed" and "Time for Filing" sections of this Bulletin.
• The municipality in which such real estate is located (or the County Board, if the real
  estate is located in an unincorporated area) must, by lawful resolution or ordinance, expressly state that it supports and consents to the filing of a Class 6b Application and that it finds Class 6b necessary for development to occur on the subject property.

The vacant property under the new resolution is located at 7305 Duvan Drive. There is no current tenant identified for this property but the owner, John Kaczmarski, has leased out three additional properties on Duvan Drive, according to the village.

Kaczmarski proposed to invest $115,000 to purchasing the property, and an additional $92,000 for its renovation, according to village reports. This location has been vacant since December 2018.

The property owner previously applied for a Class 8 reclassification, but the Duvan Drive Industrial Park Class 8 certification for the expired, and the village recommended he pursue a Class 6b instead.

"If you've been over there, it certainly is in need of assistance," Village Manager David Niemeyer said. "Our recommendation is that we request a Class6 incentive under special circumstances that the building has been vacant for under 24 months."

According to the village, the property consists of 3,600 sq. ft. of industrial space on a 13,394 square foot site. Renovations to the space will include correcting code violations, installing a sprinkler system, repaving the driveway and parking lot, installing new overhead doors, repairing the truck dock area, as well as interior cosmetic improvements.

Kaczmarski is a longtime Tinley Park business owner, who just retired from EZ Recycling after 28 years in business. The Village said they expect Kaczmarski to increase the property tax value of the location as a result of the improvements being made. The owner expects to create 7-10 jobs at this location once a tenant is found, according to the village, who noted he has been successful in creating 62 jobs.

The Economic and Commercial Commission reviewed the application on Nov. 9 and voted unanimously, recommending the approval of the reclassification. If the standards from the agreement are not met, the village can choose to revoke this reclassification.

For additional information, visit the Village of Tinley Park's website.