Bridge Industrial isn’t ready to give up on a major redevelopment project that will transform Baxter International’s Deerfield headquarters campus into a 1.1 million-square-foot industrial complex.
CoStar said the developer withdrew its proposal with the village of Deerfield last month after facing strong opposition from local residents, and is seeking approval for the project by seeking Lake County officials to reintroduce it through a separate government channel. report.
Bridge plans to discuss rebuilding with the Lake County Department of Planning, Construction and Development on July 18. The county will then create a public report based on the meeting, and Bridge will decide whether to submit a formal development application.
As the remote working movement sparked by the pandemic has reduced demand for office space across the Chicago area, converting large office parks to industrial use has become more common, especially given the strong performance of Chicago’s industrial sector.
Elsewhere in the Chicago area, Dermody Properties is redeveloping the 232-acre former Allstate campus in Glenview into five warehouses totaling more than 1.2 million square feet. In Rolling Meadows, Brennan Investment Group plans to demolish a 485,000-square-foot office building to create a Class A industrial facility.
Bridge likely paid between $90 million and $100 million in January for the 646,000-square-foot, 10-building Baxter campus, depending on whether local officials approve zoning. The developers plan to raze the buildings and replace them with a 101-acre logistics park.
But residents of Deerfield objected. They flooded into a planned village hall meeting to protest the project, forcing its delay and thousands signing a petition against the project. Residents cited truck traffic, excessive noise and pollution as reasons for their resistance. Ultimately, Bridge backed down amid the upheaval.
It is unclear whether the developer will change the original plans for the site, which called for 896,700 square feet and 228,450 square feet for warehouses. Baxter will relocate if it is approved and officially sold at 1 Baxter Avenue, but the company has not yet announced where it will move.
— Quinn Donoghue
