Blue Island city officials approved a lease agreement with OmniTRAX, a private railroad transportation company, to create city revenue and jobs on 90 acres of city-owned land near 119th & Division streets that has remained vacant for decades.
The company agreed to share 8% of its net revenue generated from the property each year with the city and to pay $200,000 in rent every year for the first five years. If the lease extends beyond that, the rent would increase to $207,000 for the next five years and continue increasing every five years, according to the lease agreement.
The property is located South of 119th Street and Division Street and southeast of 119th Street and Vincennes Avenue.
The site will feature bulk commodity rail to truck transloading, secure truck and trailer storage and secure container storage, according to an OmniTRAX news release.
Blue Island Mayor Fred Bilotto said in a statement Friday the property sat idle and generated no tax revenue for decades, contributing “nothing to the local economy.” He said turning around sites like this are a major priority.
The logistics hub, he said, will bring in revenue, create jobs, attract new business activity and strengthen the city’s regional transportation network.
“This project represents exactly the kind of economic development our community needs — taking land that produced nothing for generations and putting it back to work for our residents and taxpayers,” Bilotto said. “That kind of transformation doesn’t happen by accident; it happens through persistence, partnership, and a commitment to growing Blue Island’s economy.”
Blue Island City Administrator Thomas Wogan said the land had been unused for decades due to environmental conditions that limited land use. He said it was difficult to find a use for the land because a warehouse could not be built on the property, but that OmniTRAX can use the land as storage for their clientele who are moving a variety of goods around the country.
Wogan said the company expects to build out the property and complete environmental remediations by the end of 2026.
Wogan said company officials told him they are eager to get moving on the project, with the property property undergoing a due diligence period. Initial discussions for the property began in 2024, Wogan said.
“This is an extremely rare rail-served industrial site in the heart Chicago that offers unparalleled market access,” OmniTRAX Senior Vice President Chris Tecu said in a news release.
OmniTRAX affiliate Chicago Rail Link has operated in Blue Island since 1992.
OmniTRAX is affiliated with The Broe Group, a Denver-based private, multi-billion dollar investment firm. The Broe Group attempted to negotiate a deal with the Illinois International Port District to privatize the Port of Chicago in 2013, but that fell through.
awright@chicagotribune.com
