CHAMPION — More than a year has passed since news broke in the summer of 2023 that Core Spaces had decided to exit the Illinois Terminal expansion project.
However, it turns out that while Core may no longer be involved in the development, there are still agreements on the books that need to be resolved in order for MTD to move forward with another developer.
The Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Transportation District Commission is scheduled to vote on a resolution to terminate the development agreement with Core Champaign Hockey LLC at its 3 p.m. meeting today.
MTD entered into an agreement with Core in December 2021, MTD Managing Director Carl Gunad wrote in a memo to the board.
“(The onset of) the pandemic and the ensuing hyperinflation made it impossible for developers to accomplish their projects,” he said. “They told MTD they were going to withdraw from the project.”
He added that a “formal termination of the previous agreement” is appropriate as negotiations with the new developer, Lloyds Witte Downtown LLC, are ongoing.
The project, formerly known as “The Yards,” was introduced before the pandemic as an 11-acre downtown development that would include a terminal expansion, sports arena, hotel, apartments, retail space and more.
Core Spaces and Hans Grotelueschen were the project’s original development partners. The City of Champaign is expected to provide funding, and current partners have also expressed excitement for the City of Champaign to be involved in the latest version of the project.
The development agreement, approved in December 2021, included an expansion of the terminal, private residential and commercial space, and shared parking, Gunat said at the time.
Elements of the proposed second phase of the initiative, which includes an arena, were removed after the University of Illinois, a former partner on the project, announced in May 2022 that it no longer plans to add a Division I men’s ice hockey program. It became even more uncertain.
Later, in July 2023, Gunat said MTD began negotiations with Lloyds Witte Downtown LLC following Core’s withdrawal from the project. Grotelueschen was also not involved in the development.
Current project concepts include an expansion and renovation of the terminal, a new parking deck over the bus platform, and apartments with retail space on the ground floor.
The latter is planned for a parcel at the corner of Walnut and Logan streets owned by Lloyd’s Witte Downtown LLC.
The limited liability company is led by Colorado developer Dennis Witte, Lloyd’s & Brinkmeyer Apartments CEO Colin Currier, and Lloyd’s & Brinkmeyer majority owner Mike Royce. It was established jointly with The trio are also partners in The Inman.
Asked how close the two sides were to reaching a new agreement, Gunat said he could not give an estimate as there were many factors involved.
“We are very close to agreement on all substantive issues,” he said. “But there are some things that are very difficult to understand. They’re not disagreements, they’re just difficult to configure. We had similar struggles with our development agreement with Core. But we is getting there.”
Gunat added that once the companies agree on terms, lawyers will need to draft the actual contract, which will need to be reviewed and approved by the Federal Transit Administration before it goes to the MTD board for a vote.
