Low on options, Wilmette officials may seek rezoning to help fill Treasure Island building

Help could soon be on the way in the Village of Wilmette’s quest to fill one of the town’s most recognizable and longest-standing vacancies.

Village Manager Michael Braiman said Tuesday, Oct. 14, during a Village Board meeting that town officials will solicit land-use planning firms that can assist in initiating a rezoning discussion for the former Treasure Island store.

Trying to facilitate an occupant at 911 Ridge Road since Treasure Island closed in 2018, village officials continue to face “several barriers” in pitching the site to potential replacement grocers.

In a memo to Braiman, Lisa Brosnan, Wilmette’s business development planner, said those challenges include a lack of parking, low traffic volumes and the need for significant space upgrades. Those circumstances have town leaders feeling pessimistic that the existing space will find a new use under current parameters.

“In our meetings with the property owner, we’re not overly optimistic that something is going to happen in the existing space, so we do want to get our efforts moving to look at the zoning in that section there and see what we can do to encourage redevelopment,” Braiman said.

Wilmette’s business development team hopes to engage firms that can explore what the possible scope of work for rezoning the site would be as well as the potential costs associated with doing so, officials said on Oct. 14.

Wilmette’s recently adopted comprehensive plan, a roadmap document for policy and land use that guides community growth and development, recommended “rezoning the site to facilitate mixed-use redevelopment,” Brosnan said in her memo.

Brosnan also stated in her memo that village staffers have been in communication with “numerous grocers” regarding the space, but reiterated the challenges the property poses. She also said that some “small independent grocers have expressed interest in the location.”

Village officials remain steadfast in their efforts to try and fill the vacancy, which Braiman noted continually draws significant interest from community members.

“We know this is a priority for the community,” he said. “This is probably the space we’re all asked about the most in terms of what’s going to happen and are we going to see a new grocery store or new development.”

In early 2019, there seemed to be a match for a new occupant when officials reported that well-known nonprofit Goodwill agreed to lease the space, but the property’s ownership soon informed the village that it would not be moving forward with its plans, The Record previously reported.

No agreement was ever made official, and Goodwill did not submit zoning applications to the village. Village officials have now long said it’s clear Goodwill will not be occupying the space at any point during its lease.

Goodwill’s 10-year lease still has four remaining years, Braiman told the board.

Village staff hope to report back to trustees in the coming months with a progress update on the potential rezoning of the site, Braiman said.

According to listing information previously posted, the building shares 46 parking spaces with adjacent smaller storefronts, and the intersection of Lake Avenue and Ridge Road averages close to 18,000 vehicles per day. The former Treasure Island building is approximately 14,000 square feet.

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