TRANSMITTAL LETTER FOR BOARD MEETING OF APRIL 5, 2012
COMMITTEE ON REAL ESTATE
Mr. David St. Pierre, Executive Director
Title
Authority to issue a 1-year permit extension to A. Block Marketing, Inc. & Wholesale Mulch Products, Inc. on approximately 19 acres of District land located at 15660 Canal Bank Road in Lemont, Cook County, Illinois, and known as part of Main Channel Atlas Parcel 23.03. Consideration shall be $186,219.00.
Body
Dear Sir:
On February 3, 2005, the District's Board of Commissioners authorized the issuance of a 23-month permit to A. Block Marketing, Inc. & Wholesale Mulch Products, Inc. ("A. Block") co-permittees, on 19 acres of District land at 15660 Canal Bank Road in Lemont, Illinois, to operate a mulch business. The permit was subsequently extended through a series of permit extensions to October 31, 2012. The current annual permit fee is $116,417.00.
A. Block previously occupied the site under a sublease agreement with Tri-River Docks, Inc., the former tenant on the site, whose lease was terminated on November 18, 2004. A. Block desired to continue its occupancy of the site. An occupancy permit was therefore issued to A. Block to allow continued use of the site. This site has not previously been made available for lease due to the Village of Lemont's previous request that the District not issue leases on this property and the surrounding property until its long-term plans and goals for the area were devised. In response to Lemont's request, the District placed the subject and adjacent parcels on hold for several years and allowed A. Block to occupy the site under a short-term occupancy permit during the interim. Lemont has now indicated that it has no objections to making the site available for leasing through the statutory leasing process.
A. Block Marketing, Inc. & Wholesale Mulch Products, Inc. are separate entities but are owned and operated by the same principals. Their businesses work together and share the same space at the site as A. Block performs the marketing services and Wholesale Mulch performs the mulching business operations. Wholesale Mulch loads, unloads, stores, and sells mulch. It also grinds wood and trees into chips.
A. Block has requested a lease on the site and a 1-year extension to its permit is recommended to allow it to continue to occupy the site to perform environmental assessments, to complete the statutory leasing process and to allow time to vacate if it is not the high bidder and awarded a lease. Because there is no current need for this site and because the permit provides revenue for the District, a 1-year permit extension is being recommended.
A fee of $186,219.00 is recommended and is based upon recent comparable appraisals on adjacent sites.
It is requested that the Executive Director recommend to the Board of Commissioners that it authorize and approve a 1-year extension to the permit issued to A. Block Marketing, Inc. & Wholesale Mulch Products, Inc. on approximately 19 acres of District land located at 15660 Canal Bank Road in Lemont, Cook County, Illinois, and known as part of Main Channel Atlas Parcel 23.03. Consideration shall be $186,219.00.
It is further requested that the Executive Director recommend to the Board of Commissioners that the Chairman of the Committee on Finance and the Clerk be authorized and directed to execute said permit extension after same is approved by the General Counsel as to form and legality.
Requested, Ronald M. Hill, General Counsel, RMH:STM:rg
Recommended, David St. Pierre, Executive Director
Respectfully Submitted, Terrence J. O'Brien, Chairman Committee on Real Estate Development
Disposition of this agenda item will be documented in the official Regular Board Meeting Minutes of the Board of Commissioners for April 5, 2012
Attachment