Post-Tribune
Apr 01, 2022 3:30 PM
Thank you for supporting our journalism. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at the Chicago Tribune.
After tabling renewing the town’s abatements earlier in March, the Highland Town Council passed all that came before them at the March 28 meeting.
People’s Bank, Pramuk Dental Center, Webb Hyundai, Vyto’s Pharmacy, Strack and Van Til’s, City Volkswagen, Safety Training Services, Circle Buick GMC and Culver’s all were unanimously approved. The biggest concern the council had in 2021 — that businesses weren’t growing their employee numbers — seemed to be a thing of the past.
Mark Fleishman, operations manager for Safety Training Services, said getting through COVID was tough, and as a result they tried to do more with fewer employees. Then, when they made offers to five of seven candidates, one didn’t bother to show.
“It’s not an evasion,” Fleishman said, adding that when the company holds training in Highland, there can be anywhere from 3,500 to 5,000 students passing through Highland and therefore eating in its restaurants, filling up its gas stations and making other use of the town’s businesses.
Last year, the council rescinded STS’s abatement but reinstated it within 30 days. Fleishman at the time told the council that several factors played into the Safety Training Services’ trimming its employee roster to 27 from an estimated 34, starting with losing one of its major contracts in 2015 or 2016. The business also dealt with remediating rainwater issues on the property, he said, and then the pandemic hit.
Webb Hyundai also came up against the council last year when it requested a five-year, 100% abatement for a project that adds 5,500 square feet to its existing structure, bringing the size up to 21,650 square feet at a cost of $3.5 million to $4 million.
Co-owner Brian Webb told the council the addition would give the dealership six more mechanic bays and 15 employees over the course of the abatement. Minus maintenance and processing fees, the abatement would work out to a total of $107,000 and then pay the full amount in taxes in the sixth year on the square footage of the new construction.
The council ultimately approved that abatement 3-2, but not without then-President Roger Sheeman, R-5th, criticizing the Webbs for bringing a consultant and financial analyst to present the project.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Post-Tribune | Apr 01, 2022 at 3:30 PM Thank you for supporting our journalism. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at the Chicago Tribune. After tabling renewing the town’s abatements earlier in March, the Highland Town Council passed all that came before them at the March 28 meeting. People’s Bank, Pramuk Dental Center, Webb Hyundai, Vyto’s Pharmacy, Strack and Van Til’s, City Volkswagen, Safety Training Services, Circle Buick GMC and Culver’s all were unanimously approved. The biggest concern the council had in 2021 — that businesses weren’t growing their employee numbers — seemed to be a thing of the past. Mark Fleishman, operations manager for Safety Training Services, said getting through COVID was tough, and as a result they tried to do more with fewer employees. Then, when they made offers to five of seven candidates, one didn’t bother to show. “It’s not an evasion,” Fleishman said, adding that when the company holds training in Highland, there can be anywhere from 3,500 to 5,000 students passing through Highland and therefore eating in its restaurants, filling up its gas stations and making other use of the town’s businesses. Last year, the council rescinded STS’s abatement but reinstated it within 30 days. Fleishman at the time told the council that several factors played into the Safety Training Services’ trimming its employee roster to 27 from an estimated 34, starting with losing one of its major contracts in 2015 or 2016. The business also dealt with remediating rainwater issues on the property, he said, and then the pandemic hit. Webb Hyundai also came up against the council last year when it requested a five-year, 100% abatement for a project that adds 5,500 square feet to its existing structure, bringing the size up to 21,650 square feet at a cost of $3.5 million to $4 million. Co-owner Brian Webb told the council the addition would give the dealership six more mechanic bays and 15 employees over the course of the abatement. Minus maintenance and processing fees, the abatement would work out to a total of $107,000 and then pay the full amount in taxes in the sixth year on the square footage of the new construction. The council ultimately approved that abatement 3-2, but not without then-President Roger Sheeman, R-5th, criticizing the Webbs for bringing a consultant and financial analyst to present the project. Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.