According to Crain’s, Bridge Industrial has informed the Village of Deerfield that it is retracting its proposal for the 101-acre site situated between Saunders Road and Interstate 94/294. This action is likely to terminate the project, which has faced strong opposition from nearby residents.
Bridge had been urging the village to annex the corporate campus, which the company would then demolish and replace with two warehouses totaling over 1.1 million square feet and a recreational sports complex.
The withdrawal occurred just one day before Bridge was scheduled to face criticism at a village plan commission meeting, where homeowners from a residential subdivision across the street from the campus had been actively opposing the plan in recent months. Crain’s reported that the meeting has been canceled.
The reasons behind Bridge’s decision to withdraw are unknown, and it remains uncertain if this move will end their effort entirely. Although Bridge could proceed with the project without Deerfield annexing the property, as it is currently located in unincorporated Lake County, it is more likely that Bridge will abandon the project entirely due to the lack of support from public officials. If the project becomes unfeasible, Crain’s reported that it will also crush Bridge’s agreement to purchase the campus from Baxter for an estimated price of $90 to $100 million.
