Joe Taylor’s Compasspoint Gets OK for Barrington Redevelopment

Developer Joe Taylor III is keen on playing in his own backyard.

The Barrington resident, whose firm Compasspoint Development has a handful of projects in various suburbs of Chicago, scored approval from leaders of his hometown to build a four-story, 125-unit luxury apartment complex in the town’s Golden Triangle area, the Daily Herald reported.

The proposal received unanimous approval during the Dec. 11 village board meeting, signaling the commencement of a long-awaited redevelopment of the downtown area.

The 6.2-acre project, located at 200-300 North Hough Street, is set to redefine the southern side of West Liberty Street, encompassing the former Market Center building and a former Volvo dealership. The centerpiece of the development is the multifamily building, called the Mylo Barrington, plus 12,600 square feet of restaurant and retail space.

The project will also include a 2,900-square-foot full-service restaurant, coffee lounge and residential lobby that will be developer-owned and open to the public.

Taylor’s firm earlier this year won approval in Des Plaines to build another project, also called the Mylo, for which it planned 131 apartment units at 622 Graceland Avenue with hopes of delivering the project this year. Compasspoint this month overcame some initial local opposition and got a nod from Arlington Heights officials to build a 135-unit building with a ground-floor restaurant in that northwest suburb, at 116-120 West Eastman Street, where the apartments will replace two low-rise office buildings.

Taylor is moving forward with an innovative touch to the Barrington development, called the Roost Motor Club, where Compasspoint will offer 38 “car condominiums” for high-end vehicle collectors. The car condos, on a parcel near railway lines and bounded by Liberty Street, are expected to draw interest from beyond the Barrington area.

The completion of this project marks a significant milestone in the redevelopment of what was previously known as the suburb’s Redevelopment Area One, Village President Karen Darch said. Already home to the apartment building at 101 West Liberty Street, the Golden Triangle is poised to become a more vibrant hub with the infusion of mixed-use spaces.

Compasspoint in 2022 completed a 212-unit Des Plaines multifamily project known as the Welkin, at 1425 Ellinwood Avenue, and it’s working on another Mylo-branded project in Naperville that it hopes to deliver in 2024, its website shows.