A vacant building on Main Street/Route 72 in Sleepy Hollow, across from the former Spring Hill Mall in West Dundee, is being transformed into a bistro-style Polish restaurant with a banquet facility, rooftop bar and small deli.
A height variance requested for the project at 1001 W. Main St. was tentatively approved last week by the Sleepy Hollow Village Board and will be presented for final approval at the board’s August meeting.
Building owner Tomland LLC wants to increase the building’s height from 41 feet to 54 feet to add a rooftop atrium and bar.
“In essence, this gives them the go-ahead to move forward with their plans,” Village President Stephan Pickett said.
The atrium would provide a spot for weddings, cocktail parties, and quiet conversation and drinks as an alternative space to the larger event rooms on the two floors below it, according to documents presented at the board’s July 15 meeting.
Its windows will face toward Main Street, documents said, and the solid wall at the back will reduce sound transmission for the neighbors living south of the facility. A corridor will connect the atrium with an existing elevator, which will be extended to serve the new third floor.
Tomland has named the new businesses Palladino Restaurant and Palladino Banquets. A small retail area will be established to sell smoked meat produced on site, documents said.
Agata Kloda-Dziambor said she and her business partners have been in the banquet business for 10 years.
“Palladino is just a classy name we came up with. It has no special meaning behind it,” Kloda-Dziambor said. “We like Sleepy Hollow very much in every aspect — the location and the unique atmosphere.”
The owners are in the process of developing a menu that will include traditional dishes as well as specially developed recipes, she said. They don’t have a opening date yet but hope to do so as soon as possible.
Pickett said he expects construction will take about nine months.
According to Kane County property records, the building dates back to the late 1990s. Over the years, it had been a Sears Homelife and a Maxway Motors car dealership, Pickett said.
Vacant for the last six years or so, the building had been in a state of disrepair before being purchased by Tomland in 2023, he said. The new owners have already completed interior demolition and are now updating the plumbing, according to documents.
A main concern had been whether there are enough parking spaces for the new businesses, Pickett said. The developer has been talking to businesses in an adjacent strip mall east of the site for use of spaces there, he said.
Overall, the project as a plus for Sleepy Hollow, Pickett said.
“It’s great that they will be repurposing an empty building,” he said. “We’re excited that they are coming to town and contributing to our commercial tax base.”
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.