Olive Street Development Moves Carpentersville Project Forward

The delayed Iron Flats apartment project in Carpentersville is getting back on track after abruptly halting construction last year.

Olive Street Development, which spearheaded the 130-unit complex, is teaming up with Horizon Development to complete the project, village officials said. The Carpentersville Village Board voted this week to extend the project’s completion deadline by two years, giving the new team time to finalize a revised redevelopment agreement and start work, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The deal breathed life into a project dormant since October, when Olive Street’s previous partner, WT Group, walked away due to undisclosed internal disputes. The withdrawal caught village officials off guard and left the future of the prominent site — at 201 West Main Street, near Route 31 and Huntley Road — in limbo.

The redevelopment’s scope and design are expected to stay largely intact, with features like a rooftop deck, dog park, fitness center, business center, underground parking and EV charging stations. It will also keep its village-approved tax increment financing incentive, which freezes property taxes until 2038 or until $10.9 million in reimbursements is reached, whichever comes first. Roughly $1 million in waived permit fees is in play as well.

Originally approved in 2022, Iron Flats started construction in May 2023 and was pitched as a linchpin in the village’s broader strategy to revitalize the Old Town district along the Fox River. Design plans drew from the materials and aesthetics of historic local mills, hoping to bridge new development with the area’s industrial roots.

The unexpected pause came in part due to unexpected underground engineering problems tied to the building’s planned parking structure.

With the new development team in place, construction could restart by the end of the year and take 14 to 18 months to complete, according to Village Manager Brad Stewart.

Once delivered, Iron Flats will mark one of Carpentersville’s largest new multifamily additions in years.

— Judah Duke