A developer is proposing a large inflatable sports dome for a site south of Interstate 80 and west of the Brookside Marketplace shopping center in Tinley Park, according to plans under review by the village.
GK Development Properties LLC wants to put up a 142,000-square-foot dome and adjacent building with stores and restaurants on property where a 9-hole golf course once operated.
A second phase proposes a smaller 30,000-square-foot dome, according to plans before the village’s Plan Commission.
The plans come on the heels of Tinley Park’s approval in August of plans for a multilevel Topgolf outdoor driving range that would be about a half mile east of the proposed sports dome.
The 48-acre site for the proposed dome is at 7600 191st St., between 76th Avenue, which is unimproved, and Panduit Drive to the west.
The land was annexed to Tinley Park in 1992 and had been the location of Graystone golf course, which opened in 1992 and closed in 2012, according to the village.
The proposal was discussed at a Plan Commission workshop Sept. 5, and will be discussed at a Plan Commission public hearing at 7 p.m. Sept. 19 at Tinley Park Village Hall, 16250 S. Oak Park Ave.
The initial dome would have an 18,600-square-foot precast support building, and the dome, which would have polystyrene fabric for the roof, would be 75 feet tall at its highest point, according to plans.
Operators have told the village the dome would be used primarily for training in sports such as baseball and soccer. With two fields, it would have limited space for competitive play.
The proposal includes space for 370 vehicles and the operator has said it expects to handle 200 patrons daily Monday through Friday, and from 250 to 350 Saturdays and Sundays.
It is proposed to operate 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday through Sunday, according to plans.
The sports dome plans come after Topgolf won approval from the village to build an outdoor golf driving range on a site site to west of Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre. That 100-acre property is to the east of where the sports dome is planned, to the east of Harlem Avenue.
Topgolf would anchor the site, owned by the developers of the Odyssey Fun World center on Oak Park Avenue near Harlem Avenue and directly to the west of a CarMax dealership and east of the Brookside Marketplace shopping center at Harlem and 191st Street.
The driving range would have 102 sheltered driving bays on three levels, with a restaurant, bar and meeting space, according to plans. It would be open throughout the year.
mnolan@southtownstar.com
