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The developer’s application and presentation contain different figures for several important parts of The QUAD. Some may reflect evolving plans or different assumptions, but clarification would help residents understand exactly what is being considered.
Page cites: A = application PDF page; P = presentation slide. Resident-compiled comparison of 27 items (PDF, Oct 15) ↗ (opens in a new tab) · Source documents
The Donato Foundation applied for a conceptual planned unit development at the former Trinity International University campus. The requested mixed-use zoning covers sports, recreation, retail, commercial, community and cultural uses.
The PUD boundary covers roughly 116 acres. It includes parcels owned by the foundation and two parcels owned by the Village that the applicant wants to incorporate.
The developer’s preliminary development program totals approximately 800,000 square feet. Figures in different parts of the presentation are not perfectly consistent.
Described as 10 basketball courts, 2 ice rinks and support space.
The fiscal program lists the air-supported dome turf facility at 217,500 sq. ft.; the parking/site-data table lists “Dome” at 310,000 sq. ft. The applicant has not reconciled the two.
The fiscal program lists 12.2 acres and nine multipurpose fields/diamonds.
A 106-room hotel at Trinity Hall (the parking table says “106 beds”) and a 120-room upper-midscale hotel, which the site plan refers to as a Marriott-branded concept.
A 50,000 sq. ft. family entertainment center (bowling, arcade, food and beverage among potential uses), 35,000 sq. ft. of hotel/banquet restaurants, six conceptual outlots totaling 25,000 sq. ft. along Half Day Road, two drive-through restaurants (4,500 and 2,500 sq. ft.) and a 3,500 sq. ft. gas station/retail/tunnel car wash.
Daycare (30,000 sq. ft.), library (32,000 sq. ft.; potential public-library dedication is marked as a question in the developer’s assumptions), rehabilitation facility (20,000), ministry building expansion (22,500), banquet hall (18,000) and mansion/event space (5,000).
The application estimates 33 acres (28.4%) of public or common open space at full buildout, counting fields, trails, wetlands and stormwater detention. It does not establish how much would be freely accessible public parkland.
The parking model shows 2,798 spaces before a 280-space accessibility/landscape-island adjustment, for 2,518 provided.
The applicant requests flexibility to use off-site parking for occasional tournament demand.
Access is primarily via Half Day Road / IL 22 at Lakeside Drive and Trinity University Drive.
The Village staff report says no new vehicle road connection to Duffy Lane is proposed, though walking paths may connect toward Duffy.
The KLOA preliminary memo (Aug 12) estimates 11,632 gross and 7,586 net new daily one-way vehicle trips, counting each entry and each exit. It uses ITE trip-generation factors with a 10% internal-capture reduction and pass-by reductions.
Net trips, both directions: 532 in the weekday AM peak hour, 967 in the weekday PM peak hour, and 875 reported for the Saturday midday peak.
Saturday “In” (513) plus “Out” (392) equals 905, not the 875 reported. In the basketball row, 36 + 43 = 79, but the total cell reads 49. A corrected table should come from KLOA.
KLOA models 120 hotel rooms (vs. 226), 10,000 sq. ft. of daycare (vs. 30,000) and eight soccer fields (vs. nine fields/diamonds). Some categories differ in kind, so this does not by itself prove an underestimate, but reconciliation is needed.
The memo states IL 22 carries about 20,900 vehicles a day against an estimated 30,000 capacity. It does not settle intersection operations, queues or tournament-day conditions.
The submitted materials do not include a clearly comparable annual or peak-weekend visitor forecast. Vehicle trips cannot be converted directly into attendance.
The applicant says Phase 1 sports facilities would be foundation-owned and intended to stay tax-exempt; Phase 2 commercial lots would be platted for sale or lease and reassessed as taxable; Phase 3 community amenities are intended to remain exempt.
Earlier county research identified a pending 2026 nonprofit full-exemption request for parcel 16-19-105-007, reportedly received Sept 17, 2026. Current status should be checked in the county system. Illinois exemptions depend on qualifying ownership and use.
The presentation includes a “TIF District / Development Agreement” step, estimates 120–180 days for it, and says demolition of deteriorated buildings would be deferred until the TIF is established.
The developer models an approximately zero base equalized assessed valuation under nonprofit exemption, with increment from taxable development on the north half. Demolition after district establishment is identified as potentially reimbursable.
The filings establish no approved TIF boundaries, redevelopment plan, independent eligibility study, reimbursement ceiling, borrowing schedule or executed agreement.
The application lists foundation equity, philanthropy, grants, institutional lenders, development partnerships and tenant/operator investment as possible sources. It does not name all eventual financing partners, commercial owners or operators.
At full buildout: $604,375 in sales/food-and-beverage taxes, $517,114 in hotel tax and $59,824 in Village property taxes. These are projections, not guarantees.
Projected gross property taxes before any TIF capture, including $233,776 for School District 106 and $261,279 for High School District 113 (both included in the total).
The developer’s fiscal consultant notes current market conditions do not support feasible hotel construction, yet hotels account for roughly 44% of modeled direct Village tax receipts.
Requested one-time sale of parcel 16-19-100-003 (0 Duffy Lane) plus a redevelopment agreement. Its legal description is the north 15 feet of the east half of Government Lot 1, NW quarter of Section 19, a narrow strip. Approval pending.
Requested lease of parcel 16-19-105-004 (0 Duffy Lane) plus a redevelopment agreement. A flat $999 over 99 years totals $98,901 in nominal rent; that arithmetic says nothing about land value or the full terms. Approval pending.
The application states the Village is not a co-applicant and that disposition of Village parcels requires negotiation.
No appraisal, alternative-use analysis, public-benefit terms, maintenance/liability obligations or separate approval process has been described.
The core campus is zoned C — College. The filing requests a text amendment creating a new multi-use district, a map amendment for two southern parcels, and conceptual PUD approval as a special use.
Conceptual PUD approval can establish permitted use categories, intensity, circulation, buffers, phasing and other broad parameters. It does not replace later detailed and final plans.
The staff report directed the commission to continue the hearing to November 2 without substantive action on the October 5 requests.
The proposed use matrix includes potential residential accommodation/townhomes, movie theaters, office/coworking and certain light-industrial/warehouse-type uses. Being on the list is not a commitment to build them.
The Village has not yet specified which use categories would be permitted by right versus conditional.
The application describes sports uses in 2026–2028 and commercial/hotel phases into 2030; the revised presentation shows sports Q3 2026–Q3 2027 and commercial/community Q4 2027–Q3 2028.
PCZBA minutes record Anthony Donato as recused from the Feb 2, 2026 temporary-use recommendation (4–0) and the May 4, 2026 housing vote.
The Village’s current PCZBA roster, checked Oct 14, 2026, does not list Anthony Donato.
Requested relief would allow a permanent, 79-foot-tall air-supported dome.
Outdoor field-light poles up to 80 feet with cutoff fixtures.
Up to 45 feet or three stories, whichever is greater.
Pylon/ground signs up to 25 feet tall and 15 feet wide, with more flexible color and dome-sign standards.
Staff cites the nearby Chicago Stars facility, approved separately for a seasonal dome up to 69 feet (in place Nov 1 – Mar 31 only), 70-foot light poles, lighting hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. and a residential illumination standard. It is a different, seasonal facility, not an equivalent; those conditions have not automatically been applied to The QUAD.
The latest concept places the dome toward Lakeside Drive / I-94 rather than the eastern residential edge. Final visibility, equipment noise, light spill and hours still need enforceable standards.
April Village Board minutes describe a 60-decibel amplified-sound limit and Meyer Sports Complex use until midnight under revised temporary-use terms.
A neighbor says Anthony Donato cited Bettendorf, Iowa’s TBK Bank Sports Complex as inspiration in a March 17, 2026 conversation; it is not named in the October application. TBK’s reported 1.5 million area visits in 2025 are not a forecast for The QUAD.
In 2025, The Real Deal reported that an affiliate of Hillwood, the Dallas firm of Ross Perot Jr., was negotiating to buy about 80 acres of the campus for about $35 million for commercial redevelopment. Village Board minutes record the deal as terminated in fall 2025. The Donato purchase covered the whole campus; a proposed price for part of the site is not an appraisal.
Lake County conveyance records show a $20 million transaction dated Jan 8, 2026 (recorded Jan 29) from Trinity College to the Donato Foundation.
On Jan 12, 2026, Anthony Donato presented sports and family entertainment ideas to Village trustees; the minutes describe their response as enthusiastic.
On Oct 30, 2023, Donato took part as a commissioner in a Comprehensive Plan discussion of future Trinity uses. This predates the foundation’s purchase.