Barrington Bank buys Woodstock Station property

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WOODSTOCK – The future of the Woodstock Station property remains in limbo after a public auction Thursday at the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office.

The dowtown redevelopment property was bought by Barrington Bank for $1.25 million. Representatives from Barrington Bank declined to comment.

Woodstock Station was to include as many as 59 town houses, 150 to 200 condominium units, and a 60,000-square-foot commercial center. It spans a nearly two-block area near the city’s historic downtown, bordered by First Street on the north, Clay Street on the east, Newell Street on the south, and railroad tracks on the west.

The project was started by Bob Hummel of the Hummel Group in Palatine. According to court records, a foreclosure judgment of about $4.7 million was entered earlier this year. Of that, about $4.3 million was principal, $329,000 was interest, about $60,000 was taxes, and late charges accounted for about $5,198.

The auction was lightly attended. Only Barrington Bank made a bid.

“It’s a good location,” said Woodstock Deputy City Manager Derik Morefield, who attended the auction. “It’s near the Metra station and downtown. We think it's a good site.”

Morefield said that zoning and design requirements that the city approved for the project would remain in place, regardless of who, ultimately, ended up developing it.

“The requirements that we approved were meant to drive the highest-quality product and to ensure that it be compatible with the downtown,” Morefield said.

The property once was owned by Woodstock. The city attained the land in the 1980s through a water lien after Woodstock Die Cast left Woodstock. The city had to clean up the property to satisfy the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. The city also acquired three neighboring properties as part of the redevelopment effort. The city eventually conveyed the land to Hummel for about $500,000.

Ten town homes were built before the project failed; of those, eight are completed and occupied. When a new developer will arrive and restart the project is unknown.

“The market will dictate the timing of the development and when it can move forward,” Morefield said.

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