The Homewood Village Board approved the motion to restart a redevelopment agreement with A & R Screening, also known as Apparel Redefined, at the Feb. 10 meeting.
According to Homewood Director of Economic and Community Development Angela Mesaros, the village first entered into a redevelopment agreement in October 2023 with Apparel Redefined, led by owner and CEO John LaRoy. The developer plans to construct a production facility on the vacant property located at 1351 175th St. and renovate the office building at 1313 W. 175th St. for the company’s headquarters.
The project was initially expected to begin in 2024, but was delayed due to the process of securing financing, which has now been resolved, Mesaros said.
However, previous Planned Unit Development approvals granted in October 2024 had expired after deadlines for permitting and construction were not met. This resulted in a need for an updated redevelopment and purchase agreements in order to extend project deadlines, she said.
The board also approved the solicitation of alternate bids for the property which should take approximately two weeks. This step is required since the site is within the Northeast Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district and will be sold to the developer for $1, Mesaros said.
Financial assistance for the project will come from the Northeast TIF fund. Plans include transferring the 1313 175th St. building, which the village acquired for $415,000, and the site at 1351 175th St. to the developer for $1, along with soil mitigation costs not to exceed $1,130,400, she said.
Total TIF-eligible expenses tied to the redevelopment are projected at up to $5 million, with the final incentive dependent on the tax increment generated by the project, Mesaros said.
LaRoy thanked village staff and the board during the meeting.
“We thank everybody for their continued support and partnership. We’re grateful for the patience and professionalism throughout this process,” LaRoy said.
Related stories
- Homewood trustees approve plans for Apparel Redefined development on 175th Street (Oct. 19, 2024).
- Homewood board inks deal with national apparel firm (Oct. 9, 2023).
