United Airline’s employee training building on Linneman Road in Elk Grove Township. Most of the company’s employees have moved out of the 60-plus acre headquarters campus for downtown Chicago, but a handful remain as UAL works to bring a new nearby data center online
According to village Director of Community Development Bill Cooney, some computer networking employees continue to work inside UAL’s nearly empty headquarters facility next door. Since 2010, a majority of UAL employees have relocated to Willis Tower in downtown Chicago where the company’s main offices are now stationed.
Cooney said he is not sure when the other remaining employees—a small number—will make the move to Willis Tower. He does expect the data center to come online most likely in the first quarter of next year.
In May 2012, approximately 15 acres of land owned by UAL in unincorporated Elk Grove Township, between Algonquin Road and Dempster Street, was unanimously approved by village trustees to be annexed into Mt. Prospect. The data center is a one-story building consisting of approximately 22,000 sq. ft. of office space and 150,576 sq. ft. of warehouse space.
A second phase will be eventually constructed consisting of an additional 112,932 sq. ft. of warehouse space bringing the total development to 285,530 sq. ft.
The data center will handle all of the company’s computer operations globally from reservations to UAL’s website to airport kiosks.
According to Cooney, over 60 acres of the UAL campus remains in unincorporated Elk Grove Township that can only be annexed into Mt. Prospect. However, since it is over 60 acres, UAL would have to voluntarily give up that acreage as the village cannot force any annexation process.
Cooney said there have been no further discussions about annexing more of UAL’s property into the village.
“When we did the initial annexation, we had conversations with them about annexing more acreage, and they are not opposed to it, but we haven’t had any talks recently with them,” Cooney said.
Annexing additional acreage into the village, Cooney said, is not on the village’s short list of things to do, but he said the village is not opposed to the concept.
Cooney said the main issue, should the village pursue annexing more of the UAL property, is with the Elk Grove Rural Fire Protection District. Annexing additional portions would significantly reduce revenue for the fire district, which could result in the eventual demise of the district.
“This is a significant improvement to the village,” Cooney said of the data center. “There will be over 50 employees out there and this is not just a monetary investment by UAL. This is a big deal.”
A communications representative for UAL said the company would decline to provide any further details on remaining employees in Elk Grove Township and the move to Chicago at this time.
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