Ferak: Basinger's Jefferson St. Project Hasn't Begun

JOLIET, IL - Since I moved back to the Joliet area last summer after being gone for 20 years, the Joliet City Council and Mayor Bob O'Dekirk have generally been welcoming toward new business proposals. But not always. Last December, the city gave a chilly reception toward Thaer Jbara, Kenjal Patel and Silken Patel. They wanted to open a large volume liquor store called the Joliet Market on Jefferson Street. They had their sights set on an empty 12,000-square-foot storefront across from Marycrest's Shopping Plaza.

Joliet Market sought a Class C liquor store. Jbara, a city memo noted, had 12 years of experience selling alcohol. But the Joliet Market project did not have a chance at succeeding because one of the city's longtime businesses, Basinger's Pharmacy, felt threatened by the competition.

Basinger's had acquired the vacant Senor Tequila property a couple of properties away from the proposed Joliet Market location. Basinger's informed the city it plans to bulldoze the empty bar and open a new Basinger's Pharmacy on the site. The new business would also have a liquor department. The city approved the liquor license for Basinger's back around March 2017.

So in the end, the Joliet City Council rejected the Joliet Market liquor store project.

"A representative from Basinger's appeared (before the city) and indicated that, if this license were approved, that (the Basinger's) development would not occur," a city council memo notes. "Based upon the saturation of liquor licenses in the vicinity as well as the impact that this additional one would have on the area, as well as the negative impact on development, the Liquor Commissioner wishes to deny this application."

Development?

Now eight months later, the Senor Tequila building, where I spent a good number of weekend nights back in the 1990s drinking frozen margaritas, is looking pretty drab. It's kind of sad.

But what's even sadder is that Basinger's has failed to live up to its promise of tearing down the building and building a new top of the line pharmacy, as its representatives have assured the city they would do.

We're now in August. There is no noticeable sign of any redevelopment activity at the Senor Tequila property, no bulldozers, no heavy equipment, no chain link fences. There is nothing to indicate Basinger's is moving across the street and constructing a new 14,000-square-foot facade anytime soon.

Last September, Joliet Herald-News reporter Bob Okon quoted Harish Bhatt, owner of Basinger's, as saying he was targeting August 2018 for the new Basinger's opening at the Senor Tequila site.

This past March, Okon ran another article headlined, "Basinger Pharmacy Still Aims To Build New Joliet Store This Year. "Our timetable is still to break ground this year and open this year," Bhatt, owner of Basinger's told Okon.

Well, it's August and the prospects of any significant redevelopment even starting in 2018 at the Senor Tequila's appear less likely with every passing month.

Moving forward, the city of Joliet needs to have measures in place to hold businesses such as Basinger's more accountable to the public for their failures to live up to their intentions that they put on paper.

Basinger's has talked a good game to city politicians and to newspaper reporters about grand plans to sink lots of money into a new first-class building on West Jefferson, but their actions speak louder.

The City Council approved plans for Basinger's drive-thru pharmacy back on April 3.

Five months later, the 2100 block and 2200 block of West Jefferson don't look any different.

Basinger's Pharmacy remains tucked away in the Marycrest Shopping Plaza at 2130 West Jefferson.

Across the street, the storefront at 2155 West Jefferson, where Joliet Market wanted to sell packaged liquor, is still vacant.

Two doors up the street, the Senor Tequila property, 2219 West Jefferson, remains vacant, but it has lots of weeds growing around the entrance and by the windows.

The same questions linger.

When will Senor Tequila get knocked down?

When will the new Basinger's get built?

At this point, it's anybody guess.

I would also add it's not outside the realm of possibilities that quarterback Mitch Trubisky will lead the Chicago Bears to a Super Bowl appearance before city of Joliet officials attend a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the grand opening of the new Basinger's Pharmacy and liquor depot.

RELATED JOLIET PATCH COVERAGE:

Joliet Rejects Huge Liquor Store Planned On Jefferson Street

Joliet May Reject Joliet Market Liquor Store Proposal

New Beef Restaurant Slated For Jefferson Street

Applebee's Closes On Jefferson Street

Nick's Gyros Wants To Open On Jefferson Near Midland

A Joliet native and former investigative reporter and editor with USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, John Ferak is Patch Editor for Joliet, New Lenox and Bolingbrook and Patch coverage for Shorewood and Channahon-Minooka.