Village, Property Owner Greenlight New Traffic Signal for Buffalo Grove Road

A new traffic signal will be installed on Buffalo Grove Road, according to terms of an amended ordinance village officials approved Monday night.

The signal will be added at the north entrance of The Plaza at Buffalo Grove shopping center, which is anchored by . The cost will be covered by the shopping center’s owner, Tony Youshaei.

Under the ordinance, will not issue building permits for the construction of a new Chase Bank until the shopping center owner obtains permits for the traffic signal from Cook County and the Illinois Department of Transportation and establishes an escrow account for the traffic signal construction.

Once permits are issued for traffic signal installation, construction is expected to be completed within six months. If it’s not finished within a year, the village will be entitled to the escrowed funds, the agreement states.

The new Chase bank, which will include a drive-through, will be constructed on a lot at the northwest corner of Dundee and Buffalo Grove roads, at the southeast side of the shopping center. The plans were approved by the Plan Commission in late 2011.

The amended ordinance follows an initial deal between the village and Dominick’s, which was supposed to install the traffic light upon the store’s 2001 relocation to the shopping center from the building that now houses .

While Dominick’s deposited more than $200,000 with the village toward the signal installation, village leaders said the store did not follow through with the work despite “extensive correspondence” regarding the matter. Meanwhile, Buffalo Grove upheld its end of the agreement, returning more than $251,000 in incremental sales tax to the store.

Village President Jeff Braiman said that while he is frustrated that Dominick’s will “get off the hook” for the traffic signal, he’s glad that one will finally be installed.

“It’s been over 10 years that we were promised a traffic signal. That is not an easy parking lot to get in and out of,” Braiman said. “This time, we really mean it. We’re going to get the signal.”

Other improvements will include a new façade for the south end of the shopping center, which faces Buffalo Grove Road. The plan also calls for improvements to the parking lot and landscaping.