A badminton club is planning to open a 16,000-square-foot indoor training facility with six courts in an industrial district on the west side of Morton Grove.
The Village Board was expected to approve the proposal, introduced to trustees earlier this month, at its April 23 meeting.
Brandon Nolin, community development administrator for Morton Grove, said the project will require a special use permit for the training facility, proposed at 8150 Lehigh Ave., that would accommodate up to 24 players at a time.
“Most members would range from elementary school age to college age,” Nolin said. “Many are dropped off and picked up by parents.”
Egret Badminton operates similar facilities in Schaumburg and Chicago, he said, adding that both of those clubs are also located in industrial areas.
The proposal was unanimously approved by the village’s Traffic Safety Commission on March 7, and the Plan Commission approved a unanimous recommendation to grant a special use permit for the facility on March 19, he said.
Trustee Janine Witko said the special use permit is needed because indoor recreational facilities are classified as such in the manufacturing zoning district in which the club is seeking to locate.
Appearance Commission review of the application was not required because Egret is not proposing any exterior modifications to the proposed site and plans to conform to signage requirements, she said.
The Plan Commission recommended the project for Egret, which will lease the property, “with conditions relating to business operations, parking lot lighting, and a prohibition on tournaments,” Witko said.
Nolin and Village Administrator Ralph Czerwinski said there is not yet a timeline for when the club will open.
“It will be potentially approved at the next Village Board meeting,” Nolin said April 17. “After that we secure the building permit. We know they’re eager to get going and they’re trying to secure building materials, so they can do their buildout. We’ll know the timeline once they get their building permit.”
“We don’t really have a timeline for them yet,” Czerwinski said. “They have to get their materials together. They’ve got to get their permit after they’re approved. And then they have to get their materials and make sure their contractor is in line. We’re waiting for that timeline, but I’m sure they’re going to be aggressive in this.”
According to an April 2 report from the Community and Economic Development Department, Egret will lease 16,283 square feet of a total of 37,666 square feet available at 8150 Lehigh.
Because the Morton Grove club will operate primarily during evenings when other nearby businesses are closed and many visitors will be dropped off, a parking study “determined that the proposed plan has sufficient off-street parking to meet the demands of the development,” it said.
The firm will staff four to eight employees at the site at any given time, the report said. The club will operate from 3 or 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends, it said.
“Staff recommendation has been included as a condition of approval that parking lot lighting be analyzed to ensure lighting is sufficient to provide proper security for patrons visiting in the evenings, prior to the issuance of a building permit,” the report said.
Egret’s Schaumburg facility spans 14,100 square feet with 35 off-street parking spaces and the Chicago facility, 14,500 square feet with 26 off-street parking spaces, the report said.
The company plans to install new paint and carpeting and sports flooring on top of an existing floor, it said.
An Egret representative said the facility “does not lend itself” to tournaments due to capacity and layout, the report said.
