Elk Grove Village buys shuttered Phoenix club

The owner of the Admiral Theatre in Chicago is selling the shuttered Phoenix Bar & Nightclub for $1.35 million to Elk Grove Village, which plans to demolish the bar and hold on to the land for future redevelopment. Sam Cecola, owner of the famous Chicago strip club, took over the long-standing LGBTQ bar at 1932 E. Higgins Road in early 2018, but the bar abruptly closed last November alter 37 years in business. Cecola, of Barrington, and his attorney didn't respond to requests for comment Wednesday about the decision to sell the bar or its earlier closure. But Mayor Craig Johnson said village officials were happy to take the deal as a natural extension of their redevelopment efforts nearby at Higgins and Busse roads and the Elk Grove Technology Parkjust down the road. They reached out and talked to us and said they wanted to sell it. We're always looking for ways to improve that corridor and have it developed, Johnson said. We're looking forward to having another piece in the future oing to happen there. There are no set plans for the 1.5-acre Phoenix site, Johnson said, beyond some type of future business use in what remains a busy commercial corridor. For now, the village is hiring McHenry-based HR Green for$56,000 to handle engineering and management for demolition of the building and site restora