A 343-acre industrial park may become a part of DeKalb’s skyline in the near future.

The DeKalb Plan Commission held a preliminary hearing regarding the details of the plan for the industrial park at its Wednesday night meeting.

The park will be developed in the spirit of Park 88, with tenants similar to Nestle, Goodyear and Target, said Gerard Keating of Keating Resources, the contract purchaser of the land, located south of Interstate 88 and east of Route 23.

The park is unique because it will be connected to the tollway oasis, Keating said.

Private meetings with residents on the opposite side of Route 23 regarding concerns about development are expected to take place in the next two weeks, Keating said.

Construction is expected to start in spring 2006, he said.

The commission also held a public hearing about the levying of impact fees, proposed design guidelines for new homes and developer contribution proposals.

DeKalb resident Herb Rubin said the design guidelines should have a strong preface stating they are advisory and not mandatory and they should adhere more to the plan which talks about small shopping areas at certain intervals.

He said he was in favor of levying impact fees but did not support the levying of real estate transfer taxes instead of impact fees.

At least one resident did not agree.

Real estate transfer taxes are recurring as opposed to the onetime impact fees and should be considered said DeKalb resident Steve Irving.

The city’s proposal is inadequate as funding for schools is needed now, said Irving.

Because of the scarcity of public feedback, the plan commission will hold another public hearing at its next meeting Sept. 14.