Gurnee hotel and apartment complex proposal moves forward

Chicago Tribune

6 days ago

A new planned hotel and apartment complex in Gurnee is one step closer to opening now that the village's Board of Trustees approved a liquor license at a meeting Monday.
The property at 6161 W. Grand Ave. was previously operated as a Holiday Inn. The hotel, which was listed for sale in May 2024, was purchased by Khayat Enterprises, which closed on the property last month, according to Village Administrator Patrick Muetz.
After renovations, the restaurant and development company plans to reopen the development as the Ten Hotel, Convention Center and Residences. It will feature 32 one-bedroom apartments, 48 studio apartments and 105 hotel rooms. The property will also have two restaurants on-site, as well as a cocktail lounge.
Elliot Khayat, a managing partner at Khayat Enterprises, also holds liquor licenses for Primo Italian American Cuisine and Lola's Tacos & Tequila, both in Gurnee.
Muetz said that as the Holiday Inn location already had a liquor license, there was no need for the Village Board to amend the municipal code, adding that the licenses from the previous owners would transfer, if approved.
The board unanimously approved granting the development a Class 8 liquor license.
During the meeting, the board also voted to approve several transformational grants to local businesses as part of its Small Business Capital Investment Program.
The program started in 2021, and allowed for up to $10,000 to be given out in grants to small businesses within Gurnee. In the years since, the program has been updated and now has two categories of grants.
Impact grants now allow up to $20,000 to be dispersed per business. Gurnee also offers transformational grants, which allow businesses to apply for a 1:1 matching $50,000 grant. The grants can be used for capital improvements. Over the past four years, Gurnee has awarded grants to 56 businesses within the village.
This year, the board unanimously approved funding grants for three Gurnee hotels: Super 8, La Quinta Inn & Suites and Hampton Inn.
'Well-maintained hotel properties create a positive impression and guest experience for visitors to Gurnee,' Community Engagement Coordinator Matt Trujillo said.
With the grant funding, the Hampton Inn plans to mill and pave its parking lot, which will cost $177,800. La Quinta Inn & Suites plans to use the funding to help pay for a full façade renovation, including new signs and lights, which will cost $450,000.
Super 8 is planning a full roof replacement, a new front entrance with automatic double doors and the implementation of PTAC heaters and coolers in all of the hotel's 80 rooms, which will cost $195,000.
Each hotel was approved to receive $50,000 in grant funding.
To get more businesses participating in the grant program, the village is sending targeted mailings to the property owners in Gurnee's East Grand Corridor, according to Trujillo. He said that Gurnee is also reaching out to new qualifying businesses in the area.
'The part of our program that I like the best is that we go after people to give them money,' Mayor Tom Hood said. 'It's a unique concept, but it's a concept that makes us successful because throughout the many villages that I know, many programs like this fall flat on their face because they don't do that.'