In the most recent Cook County Circuit Court activity involving the stalled development at Lake Street and Lathrop Avenue, River Forest officials filed a briefing earlier this month defending the village’s stance that structures on the partially built site be removed.
In the briefing, officials reiterated their argument that the “incomplete, dangerous nuisance structures” on the site should be removed “as soon as possible” by Wintrust Bank, the property owner.
“Restoring the site to a vacant lot with grass will help prepare it for future development,” officials said in the village’s April 4 e-newsletter. “The village’s priority for this property continues to be to attract an appropriate and viable development that will provide many community benefits.”
Lake Lathrop Partners LLC, developer of the stalled project to construct a mixed-use building on the southwest corner of Lake and Lathrop, will have the opportunity to file a response to the village’s filing before a hearing May 2, at which the matter is expected to be addressed.
Village Administrator Matt Walsh said officials are still waiting to find out if Lake Lathrop Partners will appeal a ruling in February by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Joel Chupack granting the village’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed in July by the developers against the village that claimed River Forest had acted illegally in its denial of a new building permit to restart the development.
The now failed four-story development was to contain 22 condominium units with 14,000 square feet of retail space. The project had been on the drawing board since before the village board approved Lake Lathrop’s proposal in 2016.
River Forest pulled the plug on the development over a year ago, but Lake Lathrop officials in May countered by applying for a new building permit for the development. This too was denied by the village.
In September 2023 officials repealed the building permit for Sedgwick Properties, an authorized agent acting on behalf of Lake Lathrop Partners LLC, and issued a stop work order. They said those steps were taken because Sedgwick failed to meet the requirements and conditions of the village’s 18-month building permit, which was originally issued in February 2022.
The long-delayed project had been on life support since April 2023, when Beverly Bank and Trust, a Wintrust-affiliated bank that was financing the development, filed suit against Sedgwick Properties in Cook County court, looking to claw back $4.2 million from the $20 million line of credit it issued in 2022. In the lawsuit, the lender has reportedly cited several provisions in its loan agreement with Sedgwick affiliates that were violated, including that the contract required the borrower to stay in compliance with local regulations and to stick to a tighter construction timeline.
The foreclosure case between Wintrust Bank and Lake Lathrop Partners LLC remains ongoing.