The Lake Forest Plan Commission has endorsed a proposal for a coffee shop at a vacant corner in the southern part of the city, but the developers said they will eventually propose a plan for additional activity for the dormant site.
On Feb. 15, plan commissioners unanimously approved a request for a special use permit from the Iosue Investments development team to build a Starbucks at the southeast corner of Waukegan and Everett roads. The proposed coffee shop would be approximately 2,200 square feet, including a drive-through window.
The store would include a patio on the north side of the building with outdoor seating, and would have 15 parking spaces. The store hours of operation would be from 4:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
The coffee shop would occupy one portion of the 2.3-acre site in southern Lake Forest that has not had commercial activity since 2008.
“I’m excited to finally see that corner get developed,” Commissioner Louis Pickus said.
The proposal now moves to the City Council where it is expected to on the agenda for the March 4 meeting, according to Community Development Director Catherine Czerniak.
The plan will also have to be approved by the city’s Building Review Board for design aspects. In addition, the Illinois Department of Transportation will have to review access points to Waukegan Road, where the state has jurisdiction.
Jack Frigo, an advisor to the Iosue team, said after the meeting if all the approvals come through, construction could start over the summer, with a store opening before the end of the year.
There is an existing Starbucks roughly a quarter-mile north on Waukegan Road at a shopping center, but it does not have a drive through. Czerniak said she does not information whether that store will remain open or closed.
The Iosue team wants to get some activity on the site where a series of proposals have surfaced over the last 16 years, but nothing has ever materialized.
Iosue purchased the property in 2019 as they already owned an office building next door at 1025 Everett Road. In 2021, it won city approval to develop a medical office building and coffee shop at the site, but failed to find tenants, according to city documents.
In November, the Iosue team then presented a new plan highlighted by a four-story apartment building in place of the medical building. However, the Plan Commission did not recommend approval, citing density fears.
Initially, the Iosue team said it was still going to make their case to the City Council after the denial, but ultimately moved forward on the reduced proposal for just the coffee shop.
“We considered that and rather than spend the time, we decided to get the proposal for the Starbucks underway,” Frigo said.
Frigo maintained the Iosue team hopes to come back at some point with another proposal to fill out the rest of the site.
“We are exploring future development opportunities that would be compatible to the existing office building and Starbucks,” he said.
He said another apartment building proposal is a possibility, but said he did not have a date when formal plans would be unveiled.
