Huntley’s economy is recovering slowly but steadily.
The private sector is making more contacts with the village, developers are showing more interest in the community, and one serious concrete proposal has been made to village authorities, a village official said recently.
About three weeks ago, Interstate Partners submitted a proposal for a small commercial retail project on the west side of Route 47 between Kreutzer Road and Regency Square. It would be located in the open area between the Walgreens-Chase Bank retail area on the north, and the 7-Eleven store and gas station on the south.
This boulder sits on the lot of a proposed retail project by Interstate Partners. The origins of the rock are unknown, as are the plans for its future if the project is approved. (Photo by Mason Souza/Sun Day)
“The village staff is reviewing their plans and drawings now, and the process of village review and approval has begun,” said Victor Narusis, director of new business development for the village. “We hope to complete that process in the next few weeks.
“Our economic outlook is improving, and this is a good example,” Narusis said. “I think a combination of things are responsible: The general economy is improving, the widening of Route 47 through the village has improved our image and perked up the outlook of our businesses, and the Tollway Interchange project also is expected to help our economy. We are devoting more resources to selling our community to the private sector, and so are other communities around us. It’s all adding up to a better economic outlook.”
The Interstate project, he said, is expected to include a Jimmy John’s restaurant, a Starbucks cafe, and a Rookies Bar & Grill, a chain that also has a location on Randall Road just north of the I-90 Tollway. “Additional space will also be available,” he said.
The project requires the approval of the village’s Plan Commission as well as the Village Board of Trustees.
In an interesting sidelight to this proposal, Narusis said the architectural plans for the Interstate project show that it will be built around the huge boulder that sits in the middle of this property, next to a large oak tree.
This rock has been the subject of recent conversations between long-time village residents and local historians regarding the history of the area and how the rock got there.
One local historian, Scott Lindsey, who is a member of the Huntley Historical Preservation Board, said the rock may have been placed on this property sometime in the late 1990s, just before Del Webb bought 4,200 acres nearby for its Sun City subdivision.
All the property along the west side of Route 47 south of Kreutzer Road was owned for many years by the Drendel family before Del Webb came to Huntley in 1997. The ballroom in Prairie Lodge and one street in Sun City are named in recognition of this family’s involvement in Huntley history.
Vernon and Shirley Drendel live on Drendel Road. Their son, Jim, owns and operates Drendel’s Corner Mobil next to Culver’s Restaurant at Route 47 and Del Webb Blvd. Most members of the Drendel family own and operate farms in the Huntley area.
