Next Door Self Storage, which operates 14 facilities in Illinois, recently received an award for improving its property in Algonquin, Ill. The company demolished an office building at 1910 E. Algonquin Road and constructed a 30,000-square-foot, climate-controlled storage building in its place. The structure is next to an existing 60,000-square-foot building, which was also renovated. The facility now offers approximately 1,000 storage units, according to the source.

Next Door purchased the property in 2012, but it took four years to get the $3 million renovation through the zoning process. Company president Phil Murphy was told he’d have better luck gaining approval if he found a “deep mine” for his project, the source reported. To win over the zoning board, Murphy “gave them exactly what they wanted,” he said. “Plus, at the end of the day, we were an existing property and they were stuck with us. I guess they figured it was better to have an improvement than deal with a 1987 property.”

The makeover included repaving the parking lot with permeable pavers. “We covered about 7 acres with pavers, and it was a considerable investment,” Murphy said. “This way, water goes straight through the ground, and that helps with water retention.”

In a letter, city officials praised Next Door for the site improvements and “setting a great example for other property owners to follow to encourage more investment in the East Algonquin Road corridor.”

Next Door is now adding two more 30,000-square-foot buildings to the property, which are expected to be complete next year. The company also has three self-storage sites under development. A 90,000-square-foot facility is being built in North Aurora, Ill., and it’s expected to open in July. A 127,000-square-foot property is slated to open in Oswego, Ill., by the end of the year. Both properties will contain about 1,100 storage units. A third project is in the entitlement phase in Plainfield, Ill.

Based in Naperville, Ill., Next Door Self Storage is owned by The Murphy Family.

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