Tinley Park officials approved plans Wednesday for a Topgolf outdoor, multilevel golf driving range and a proposal for a larger entertainment district the facility would anchor.
The Tinley Park Village Board approved a special use for the planned unit development, on 100 acres southeast of the interchange of Interstate 80 and Harlem Avenue.
Topgolf hopes to break ground on the project, which would include 102 sheltered driving bays on three levels, before the end of the year.
Trustees approved plans without discussion, and the plans were already supported by the village’s Plan Commission.
Village of Tinley Park
A nighttime view of a Topgolf outdoor driving range planned for Tinley Park. (Village of Tinley Park)
Topgolf would anchor the site, owned by the developers of the Odyssey Fun World center on Oak Park Avenue near Harlem Avenue, directly west of a CarMax dealership and east of the Brookside Marketplace shopping center at Harlem and 191st Street.
The golf center would be west of the village’s Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre.
Topgolf would have restaurants and bars and be open throughout the year, and a Topgolf representative said heaters would keep temperatures during a Chicago winter at about 60 degrees inside the driving range structure.
Village planners said Topgolf could be a catalyst for other entertainment-oriented uses, and noted zoning codes for the site do not permit businesses such as banks, medical offices, currency exchanges or funeral homes.
Not all of the land can easily be developed due to floodplain issues, but the 13 acres Topgolf plans to build on are not affected by water issues, according to plans filed with the village.
Much of the site consists of fallow farmland, and Topgolf would hug the curve where Prosperi Drive was extended, then follow south to 191st Street. Some of the property was used for Odyssey Fun Farm, which included Wizard of Oz-themed attractions and a corn maze.
The Topgolf property would have frontage along the I-80/Harlem interchange, have parking for 476 vehicles and tall nets at the far edge of the driving range, reaching 170 feet high in spots, to corral any golf shots.
The property was annexed to Tinley Park in 1996, and plans at that time included the CarMax as well as a Cinemark theater.
A broader development was dubbed “I-80 World,” with the village’s outdoor music venue, then called the World Music Theater, meant to spark more development nearby.
In the planning and development of the new entertainment district, the developer is agreeing to reimburse Tinley Park for all professional services as well as village staff fees and other costs incurred through the project’s completion, according to plans.
Topgolf would operate from 9 a.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, according to the petition.
In the Chicago suburbs, Topgolf has locations in Naperville and Schaumburg, and the Naperville site has been the location of more than 20 firearm-related arrests so far this year.
Headquartered in Dallas, Topgolf is a unit of Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp. in Carlsbad, California.
Topgolf has more than 100 locations worldwide, including more than 80 in the U.S. and international locations in countries including Australia, Germany, Mexico and Spain.
A company representative said Topgolf could not provide any information about the planned Tinley Park facility.
Originally Published: August 8, 2024 at 12:31 p.m.