Village officials are hoping that an eyesore at the corner of Madison and Desplaines may soon be torn down, clearing the way for an eventual expansion of the McDonald’s restaurant immediately to the south.
The municipality has signed off on the fast-food chain’s plans to build a new restaurant at the corner, but the franchisee made it clear he would not begin construction until the spring or summer months of 2010. Village Administrator Tim Gillian said he has heard that requests are being made of McDonald’s to demolish the vacant gas station that now occupies the lot slated for the restaurant’s expansion. Though the construction timeline hasn’t changed, he said, the early demolition would be “a nice sign to give people some hope” of what is to come.
Golden Arches: A rendering of the proposed McDonald’s restaurant shows the site would do away with a towering sign that marks the current location just south of Madison.
Courtesy FOREST PARK
