The past is prologue and we must learn to revisit it so that we do not make the same mistakes. I am all for a downtown area for Buffalo Grove. I think Buffalo Grove suffers from not having a downtown and I would love to walk the downtown area and support our local businesses.
However, I am not convinced that plowing the golf course for the purpose of essentially trying to establish downtown II is a good idea. Not, at least, the residents of the village are convinced that nothing can be down to redevelop the Town Center and to be sure our Trustees have learned the lessons from the past.
Go back to January 28, 1979. The Chicago Tribune stated that our officials believed we needed a town center and that they were "...not interested in a regional or strip shopping center." They spoke of a possible library on the site. A combination of retain and open space.
Jump to January 17, 1982 and they were still taking about transforming "the historic area at Lake-Cook and Buffalo Grove Roads into a "downtown" district of shopping and office complexes."
On August 18, 1987, The Trib reported that "Buffalo Grove finally will get a downtown." Town Center was described as "a mall-type tenant mix in a neighborhood shopping center" and something that the municipality has long sought for its main shopping district.
Race forward to present day, and it is generally agreed that Town Center has been a flop. Clearly its not a downtown nor a main shopping district. It does have retail - though most stores have not lasted. It does have open space - though instead of being integrated into the shopping district, the open space is off on its own alongside the post office - not easily accessible from the retail area. How nice it would have been to have a nice area to sit and relax while shopping. Remember the old Mill and pond at Golf Mill?
So what went wrong? The Village obviously spent a lot of time trying to create a downtown area. Many years in fact. Why don't we already have out downtown?
President Braiman shrugs off ideas about Town Center revitalization because the Village has limited control over the Town Center. Why is that? Why did the Village give up so much control over the development of an area they considered "historic"?
There may be very reasonable answer to these questions. Buffalo Grove residents deserve the answers. We also need to know why there is nothing to be done about redeveloping the Town Center - even if means tearing down the current retail are and rebuilding - and even if tax incentive need to be given to get it down.
If nothing really can be done, what happens to Town Center? Does it eventually become nothing more than a parking lot in the historic area of the village?
More importantly, Buffalo Grove residents need to know that the Village Trustees have done their homework, understand what went wrong in the process of developing our first "downtown" and what they are going to do to be sure the same mistakes are made in developing "downtown II."
These types of projects affect a village for years to come - in character, in quality of life, in revenue required to provide services, in taxes. Let's not let another Town Center be thrust upon our Village - at least not without the consenus of its residents and certainly not until we are assured that we have, indeed, learned from the past.
I guess what appalls me the most is almost uniform "wow, this is great" reaction from the Board of Trustees. The only semblance of a contrarian view is essentially "it is early in the process" type reactions. There is no acknowledgment whatsoever of past mistakes which as we all know means that 'those who don't learn from the past are doomed to repeat it." Unless the Board publically acknowledges that the town center was a major disaster, stops shifting the blame (and I grant that by and large this group of individuals was not in office during the planning for the town center) for the poor planning, understands the reasons why the town center stinks, and stops the current approach of what seems to be "trust us" there is little hope. One example of the disjointed planning is when the Park District gets the go ahead to proceed with it's idea to develop a performing arts facility, why does the new downtown have conceptual space for a facility that would be in direct competition with it? While I am sure the developer paints a pretty picture, the current concept seems to nothing more than a fanciful eden with concepts that appeal to the trustees rather than an suburban development plan that develops the tax base(as they fall back on the easy political propaganda "it will reduce taxes") and provides products and services that don't already exist either in the village or within easy reach.
That is SOP for the Park District. Several years ago when the was an effort to get what as called "Buffalo Dells" waterpark approved. Before they even got the project approved( as we all know it wasn't), they held a contest to name it giving a bike as a prize. In some cases, while the cart does need to come before the horse, trust the Park District not to understand the difference. The biggest irony is in the same meeting where the trustees went gaga over "the plan," they endorsed the park district effort while their downtown concept includes a competing facility. Great planning ladies and gentlemen! You folks apparently don't talk to each other much.
So, I've recently proposed a comedy club (improv) - like Zainie's, which unfortunately closed down VH. My concept - "Stone's Last Laugh", could be the anchor & bring the synergy that would finally "rock" Town Center. There could also be daily classes for kids by comics. My idea is like Bill Maher, given this: If you don't laugh about politics & all the BS in BG, you'll cry. So, if I bring 10 minutes of "shtick" about BG Politics and all that's encompassed, I can then let the real comics do their thing. 21 & older, w/booze. *Field of Dreams - "If you build it, [he] they will come" "Maher is known for his political satire and sociopolitical commentary, which targets a wide swath of topics including religion, politics, bureaucracies of many kinds, political correctness, the mass media, greed among people and persons in positions of high political and social power, and the lack of intellectual curiosity in the electorate."
My thought is to give it a try for 4 Saturday nights in the empty Book Store in Town Center to test the waters, so to speak and before I ask investors to invest in my conceptual plan, which can be replicated or modified throughout Illinois, if it rocks! (con't)
Sue: Poor Mrs. Garrity's cat died. Penelope: I had a cat who died, too. Sue: Hers died this morning. P: Mine died this morning, too. Just a few moments ago. Sue: But her cat was like her child. P: Mine was like my child. I gave birth to my cat. Lisa is Penelope. Or Normy on Cheers.
Please be aware that this proposal is a "concept" and that there will be a lengthy and intensive review process that will allow for public input all along the way. I urge everyone to follow the process and keep informed and participate in the process. You may view the developer's presentation from the August 6, 2012 Village Board Meeting at 8:00 A.M. and 8:00 P.M. daily on either Comcast Channel 6 or U-Verse Channel 99, or by going to vbg.org and clicking on Village Board, Agenda & Video on the left. Also on the vbg.org home page is a link to "Downtown Buffalo Grove" which will link you to the same information that is available to the Village Board and Village staff.
Everyone understands that this is just an initial step of a longer path. Everyone understands there are going to be differing views as to whether we need it and, if we do, what it should look like. What scares people is that Town Center I is such an utter failure and the Board seems to think that they have no ownership of that problem - not that the current Board was the Board that created it. What scares people I have talked to is the almost universal "wow" of the Board at what is really nothing more than a cookie cutter developer's concept - nice presentation, with little substance hardly warrants a "let's do this" approach. Nary a discouraging word was heard and all you hear from the Board is crickets when it comes to the question how is this going to be different that the first failure and how and why this concept is going to achieve what it seeks to. The Board as a group needs to acknowledge that TC I stinks and address why this new concept is going to be different and successful. There are huge issues that the Board seems to be slipping by with a "trust us" approach to this. In fact, it is almost defensive.
But I seem to remember the wishy- washiness and vacillating you did when Eskape was trying to open the teen dance club. First you were for it, then against it. If you open your dumb club, I am concerned about the idiots and drunks that it might attract. Those are the only types of people who'd show up for anything related to YOU. I'm thinking that you'll need to hire some BG cops just to make certain the place doesn't get out of hand. But you'll probably only need room for about 5 people, which is 3 more than you'll need for your Laughingstock water party.
I am an unbiased person and find it more a reflection on their character than anything else. Shame.
I recall that when "Town Center" went up that was supposed to be like a "downtown" area. Unfortunately, it did not take off. I had heard that McD's had wanted to move in but was told they were not "upscale" enough! They went down the street and joined Wheeling. If this is true, what a loss it was for us!