Latest news with #PlanningandZoningCommission
Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Hindi temple complex/residential development in Elgin get thumbs down from commission
A proposal to build a Hindi temple complex and residential development will go to the Elgin City Council without the endorsement of the city's Planning and Zoning Commission. Project plans submitted by Umiya Mataji Sastha Chicago Midwest call for the construction of a 231,372-square-foot temple, a 63,422-square-foot community center and a 56,042-square-foot recreation center on 34.4 acres at 840 Galt Blvd., off Lake Street/Route 20 and about 250 feet away from the Oak Ridge and Sherwood Oaks subdivisions. The development would also include a four-story, 81-unit apartment building, 38 townhomes, 1,284 parking spaces and a 2,797-square-foot gazebo, Elgin senior planner Damir Latinovic said. The temple's dome would be 125 feet high and topped with a 25-foot flagpole. In order to be built, the site's zoning would need to be changed and 19 code variances approved. The requested changes have the backing of city staff. The size of the project is 'just a little too large-scale for me,' said Commisioner Jordan Wildermuth, one of four to vote against recommending council approval. 'While I feel the idea meets the use, the magnitude is concerning to me,' Wildermuth said. 'I would support a scaled-down version, but I don't feel it meets the comprehensive plan standards.' Also voting against it were commissioners Nancy Abuali, Beto Valez and Brian Cox. Commissioner Karin Jones voted in favor of it. The property, located on the north side of Route 20 and west of Hilliard Drive, was subdivided into 15 lots in 1988 but was never developed, Latinovic said. It is zoned for general industrial use. Currently there's only one way into and out of the site, an entrance at Lambert Lane controlled by by a traffic signal and shared by the people who live at Oak Ridge and Sherwood Oaks subdivisions. Neighboring property owners were vocal in their opposition to the development, citing the size of the project, the scale of the temple and traffic increase it would generate. Temple representatives say about 800 people are expected to attend daily prayers and as many as 4,000 might come out for special events, like its New Year celebration. That volume of traffic would only add problems to an area already grappling with crashes, speeding and unsafe road conditions, neighbors said. 'This has nothing to do with racism or hate of any type as has been implied by some speakers,' Castle Creek homeowner Michele Bach told the commission. 'I fully support this religion. I support the peaceful intentions of this religion. There is no peace in traveling Route 20.' Route 20 is a 'death trap,' Bach said, with traffic going much faster than the posted 50 mph speed limit. The addition of more traffic signals along the road will not make the Route 20/Lambert Lane intersection any safer, she said. There are plans for protected green lights, but it's not going to help at the intersection of Route 20 and Lambert Lane, Bach said. 'It will not be safe,' she said. Latinovic said Umiya Mataji Sastha commissioned a traffic study in 2022, which found the 'surrounding roadway can absorb the additional traffic and will continue to function within acceptable and designed ranges' if the temple were to be built there. Another big concern for neighboring property owners was the project's scale. The temple would be almost as tall as the Tower building in downtown Elgin and would be the size of two box stores, opponents said. Alan Cruzan, an Oak Ridge homeowner, said the 19 code adjustments being sought were the equivalent of 'putting 10 pounds of potatoes in a five-pound sack. We are asking for a whole lot of variances to do that. That's what I'm opposed to,' he said. However, Peter Bazos, the lawyer representing the temple, said the request for rezoning meets all of the city's requirements, noting that it falls under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. 'This act requires communities to have a compelling reason to say no to a religious application. I don't believe you have heard any (compelling) reasons,' Bazos said. Opponents repeatedly said their criticism had nothing to do with religion, and everything to do with traffic and size concerns. Twinkal Patel spoke in favor of the development, saying she understood the opposition but wanted those in attendance to understand why temple supporters were behind the project. 'I … want you guys to understand this is basically like a home for us. It's basically a place where we come together,' she said. Even if Umiya Mataji Sastha wins council approval, temple officials must go to court to amend a 1966 consent decree created to protect the neighborhood from manufacturing uses and ensure transition yards are provided to buffer the Sherwood Oaks subdivision from the future uses on the adjoining property, Latinovic said. 'The consent decree remains in effect,' Latinovic said, and takes precedence over the city's zoning regulations.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Marlow reinstates offices, approves lot split request
MARLOW — Marlow City Council reinstated several offices within the council and Marlow Municipal Authority, including the Vice Mayor May 22. City councilors nominated and approved Jon Rich for the position of Vice Mayor. The board then re-appointed two Marlow Municipal Authority trustees and a Planning and Zoning Commission position. The board approved to re-appoint Tom Wheat as MMA Trustee for a 1-year term, Tandy Banks as a MMA Trustee for a 1-year term and Harbour Whitaker as a Planning and Zoning Commissioner for a 3-year term. In another segment, the city board opened up a lot split request from the Planning and Zoning Commission from Cameron Construction, Inc. The lot sits in the 1300 block of North 2nd. City Administrator Jason McPherson said everyone was happy with the presentation for the request. 'It's going to lead to four houses,' he said. McPherson noted a couple highlights from the presentation, such as the plans to get two completed and then build the others at the same time. He said with the garage, the property is around 1,400 square foot. McPherson said there's only one issue about possible flooding. 'We're going to work through that with the building permit process,' he said. McPherson said crews will perform a hydrology report. 'We think we know where the water is going to go,' he said. 'We're pretty sure with all this rain that we had, we actually got to see it.' McPherson said they don't think it will change, but they will have an engineer take a look at it. 'We think it should be a pretty successful use of that property,' he said. The board approved the rezone request with a 4-0 vote. Next, the board opened up a publication notice for a petition for annexation. McPherson said residents on Jerry Wayne Lane want to annex into the city. 'Portions of that were annexed into the city when that stretch made it out to the 'Y' so they'd like to be included back in that,' he said. 'This is their petition to the city, they are going to pay for the publication.' McPherson said this would lead into the June meeting for a public hearing for the annexation. The board approved to authorize publication with a 4-0 vote. Next, the board approved a Federal Fiscal Year 2025 SPR Mini Transportation Planning Grant for $12,000 from Southwest Oklahoma Regional Transportation Planning Organization through SWODA. McPherson said the grant will cover street sign mapping and pay for 80% of the street sign mapping through SORTPO. In a special meeting of the MMA, the trustee board opened a contract with Fast Forward for thermal imaging services for the electric distribution system for two years at $23,786. McPherson said this is the first item on the fiscal year 2026 budget. 'This is what we did last summer,' he said. 'Did a lot of good in finding issues that happened before an outage that we could go up and fix.' McPherson said the cost was $15,000 last year. 'We've helped them get a couple other towns down this way, so they cut our price for us and gave us a two-year deal, just under $12,000 a year,' he said. The trustee board approved the service with a 5-0 vote. In other news, the city council and MMA board approved: • To accept audit engagement letter from HSPG & Associates for audit services for fiscal year 2023-24. The City of Marlow will host its next meeting at 5:30 p.m. June 24 in the Council Chambers at 119 S. Second St., Marlow.
Chicago Tribune
22-05-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Plan for 90 rental row- and townhouses clears Naperville commission
A community of 90 rental townhouses and rowhouses would be built at the corner of Naper Boulevard and Plank Road in Naperville under a proposal that cleared the city's Planning and Zoning Commission Wednesday. Plans for The Residences at Naper & Plank call for 34 townhouses and 56 rowhouses costing roughly $3,900 to $5,000 a month, filling a niche need for 'renters by choice,' say officials with petitioner Gen-Land LLC, a subsidiary of the national real estate firm Lincoln Property Co. Commissioners unanimously recommended approval of all elements of the developer's request, despite concerns from several neighbors, who said they fear traffic congestion and would prefer a development of single-family houses. Requests from the developer include annexing the currently unincorporated land into the city; zoning it R3A for medium-density multifamily residences; approving the community as a planned unit development; recording a plat of subdivision for the 8.2-acre site; allowing the rowhouses to be 38 feet tall instead of the code-permitted 35 feet; and allowing a density of 11 housing units per acre. If these items and plans for the project are approved by the Naperville City Council, construction as soon as this fall and the homes could be fully leased by 2027 or 2028, Zach Grabijas with Lincoln Property Co. said. The developer anticipates two potential groups will have high interest in the homes, which will be between 1,550 and 1,950 square feet and will have two or three stories, two or three bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. 'The majority of it is focused on empty-nesters and active adults,' said Bryan Farquhar, senior vice president of multifamily development for Lincoln Property Co., 'but then also your younger demographic — millennials that are reaching life milestones or starting families that don't necessarily want the burden of owning a single-family home.' However, people living near the site said they would prefer more standalone, owner-occupied houses instead of rentals. They said they fear the addition of 90 new units would further tie up traffic in an area already congested by the opening of Naperville's second Costco store and a busy drive-thru coffee shop called 7 Brew. 'The proposed development is far too dense and will bring far too much traffic,' said Elizabeth Baumgart, who lives south of the site off Tuthill Road. 'We moved to Naperville for less congestion, not more congestion.' Commission Vice-chair Whitney Robbins said she lives in the area, drives on Plank Road daily and understands the worries about increased traffic. But she also appreciates that the proposal aligns with the city's 2022 comprehensive plan, which calls for a housing density of 10 to 12 units per acre at the site, she said. 'I think it's a really well thought-out plan,' Robbins said. The proposal includes a public park at the southeast corner of the site in cooperation with the Naperville Park District and constructing sidewalks and a walking path. The development would include more open space than the 30% mandated by city code and would come have 274 parking spaces across garages, driveways and the street, 71 more than the city requires. The developer also would improve and widen streets, including Burlington Avenue and Tuthill Road, to meet city standards, with a 28-foot width, curbs, gutters and storm sewer infrastructure, said Vince Rosanova, attorney for the project. Access to the townhouses and rowhouses would be limited to Tuthill and Burlington, 'which will avoid unnecessary interference with traffic circulation,' the petitioner wrote in documents submitted to the city. 'We're confident in what we're proposing,' Farquhar said.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Parking balance: What's the right mix?
May 17—ROCHESTER — Dirk Erickson said the idea of building a 180-unit apartment complex with only 140 parking stalls never occurred to him before he began planning the Bryk at Broadway Apartments. "I was a little concerned about going 80% (parking) when we were doing this, because we had always rented townhomes before, so everyone had their own garage and driveways to park in," he said. Now planning a second downtown-adjacent project, Erickson, whose company is Stack Development, has no qualms about a ratio that provides fewer parking spaces than apartments. City-required parking minimums changed with the 2022 adoption of a new unified development code, but now Rochester City Council members are asking whether such minimums are needed at all. They plan to discuss it during a June 9 study session. With a proposed 109 parking spaces for 132 apartments near Silver Lake, Erickson said the reduced parking ratio has proven successful at Bryk, which lies roughly four blocks away, near the intersection of North Broadway and Civic Center Drive. "So far, almost basically fully occupied, we are doing just fine with that," he said of Bryk. While dipping below a one-to-one ratio for parking is becoming the norm near downtown, Rochester City Council members are asking whether a minimum for developers should be required at all, anywhere in the city. "Let's not make the city's rules prevent them from going down to zero and see where we end up," Ward 5 Councilmember Shaun Palmer said. "Do I think they will go down to zero? I doubt it, but I think they will have limited parking." The city's 2022 unified development code requires at least one off-street parking space for every two apartments in most areas of the city, but earlier standards were more complex. "The parking standards, as they relate to multi-family, were pretty intense," Rochester Planning Supervisor Ed Caples said of previous requirements. "In most zoning districts, the minimum parking requirement was one parking space for a studio or one bedroom, 1.5 parking spaces for a two-bedroom, two parking spaces for a three-bedroom, and I believe three parking spaces for a four-bedroom." The past standards allowed developers to ask to incorporate fewer spots into developments along transit lines and other amenities or businesses that could reduce the need for tenants to have personal vehicles. However, the process has been seen as time-consuming for developers and city staff, sometimes resulting in added costs or delays for a project. Christine Lindsey and her husband went through the public negotiation process with the city's Planning and Zoning Commission, as well as the City Council, when they developed Cottage Grove at Saint Marys Townhomes with 15 rental units and no tenant parking. Located across 14th Avenue Southwest from Saint Marys Hospital, the complex required special permission to build without off-street tenant parking, reserving a few spaces for deliveries and visitors. It's a model that Lindsey, a Rochester native, said her family experienced in other countries. "My family's lived overseas for so long, we lived it every day, so I understood how it could work," she said. Within two years, the townhome rentals have included a mix of long- and short-term rentals, leasing to international professionals and patients, as well as younger professionals who wanted to avoid buying a car. "It's a choice," Lindsey said. "They could afford a car, but they decide they don't want one." As Rochester invests $175.5 million in federal and DMC funds for the Link rapid-transit system through downtown, Lindsey said she expects to see less reliance on cars by people living and working near the downtown core. Erickson says that's already happening, since people can go to work without needing a car, while a variety of delivery services and rideshare options exist to meet other needs. As the city continues to expand transit and provide safe biking and pedestrian options, he said tenants are less reliant on personal vehicles downtown. Among them is Nathan Hoover, one of the Bryk's first tenants. The 2017 Mayo High School graduate was introduced to the Bryk apartments while working on a marketing video for Realty Growth Inc., which was hired to lease commercial space in the building. "I've always wanted to live downtown," Hoover said. "It's been a goal of mine, instead of living in the suburbs." While his decision not to own a car or get a driver's license makes downtown living practical, he said market rents are beyond his reach. Bryk met his needs, allowing Hoover to have a lifestyle in which he gets coffee downtown before catching a bus to his northwest Rochester office. As RGI's marketing director, he said he finds himself moving throughout the city, but can make it work with public transit and relying on others for a ride when needed. When it comes to grocery shopping and some other personal tasks, it can be challenging, but relying on siblings and friends, as well as delivery options, means saving the costs of vehicle ownership is worth it. "It's a blessing and a curse, but I definitely have made it work for my lifestyle," he said. Going car-free is a choice for Hoover. But Kutzky Park Neighborhood resident Lindsey Rohe says that's not the case for everyone living without a car. "I used to wear my car like a glove," she said. "I loved having a vehicle." A 2013 disability left her paralyzed on half her body, ending her ability to drive. Having lived in two downtown apartment buildings, and now on the edge of downtown, she says her power wheelchair frequently gets her where she needs to go. Otherwise, she relies on public and private transit services. "It's not a choice, but it is a reality that I need to get a ride everywhere," she said, pointing out she's encouraged by some city efforts to increase accessibility, but also sees the need for more awareness for those who don't drive. "I can get to Walgreens, Hy-Vee, and other stores at Barlow Plaza on my own," she said of retail locations within blocks of her apartment building. "The intersection (at Civic Center Drive and 11th Avenue) is super problematic. I fear for my safety every time I cross it, but I go anyway." She said that as the city develops safer routes through and around the downtown area, she expects opportunities to open up for her and others without vehicles. Wyatt Ryan sees a similarly low reliance on cars at Nicholas Apartments, on West Center Street, where he lives. While he owns a car and rents a stall there, he rides his bike to work daily at Mayo Clinic, embracing the flexibility of living near downtown. "A lot of (medical) residents and med students do live here, and I know a lot of them don't have vehicles," he said. He said the current state of Rochester makes it difficult for him to consider giving up his car permanently, but he sees potential for the city to move in that direction. "I love the idea of not needing a vehicle, but I think depending on where those developments would be, it would be really hard," he said. Caples, from the Planning Department, says many cities are shifting expectations for apartment parking with such cases in mind. "It's an ever-evolving field and an ever-evolving understanding of what impacts are for requiring minimum or maximum parking requirements," he said. It means Rochester won't be alone if it drops parking minimums for future downtown apartment buildings. Strong Towns, a nonprofit advocacy organization addressing development patterns, reported that nearly 100 U.S. cities, including Duluth, Minneapolis and St. Paul in Minnesota, had removed parking requirements by 2021. More recently, Northfield dropped its required parking minimums with unanimous city council support. Northfield Community Development Director Jake Reilly said the effort was gradual, starting with dropping the required parking in the city's downtown historic district several years ago and taking it citywide last year. "We believe the private market knows its parking needs better than we do and therefore removing minimums means that the business owner can determine its need for constructing or including parking spaces in a project," he said. Caples said Community Development staff are still studying impacts of changes in other cities and potential consequences locally in preparation for the council discussion next month. There are some potential risks for the city, he said. "I would say, by and large, reducing to zero, off-street parking requirements and leaving it to the developer leaves open the possibility of spillover on the adjacent roadways and whatnot and the utilization of other parking areas," Caples said of potential negative consequences. Permit programs and seasonal parking requirements can reduce the amount of on-street parking in an area. However, developers and tenants acknowledge that some car owners spill into the streets when they don't want to pay for off-street parking or none is available. Palmer said the concern about added on-street parking is why he doesn't want to eliminate off-street parking requirements in neighborhoods outside the city core. However, he said, city efforts are reducing the potential conflict downtown by opening park-and-ride opportunities at the ends of the rapid-transit system and elsewhere. His fellow council member, Nick Miller, said he sees potential to eliminate parking minimums city-wide for multi-family complexes, but he is willing to start on more limited terms. He said flexibility in regulations, especially downtown, can advance the city's housing and affordability goals. Developers estimate that when costs are broken down, the construction of just one interior parking stall costs between $20,000 and $40,000. While outdoor parking lots are cheaper to build, land prices and availability downtown make them difficult to consider. Since 100 parking spaces can cost $2 million at the low end, the potential high-end rent of $200 per month per space means it would take more than eight years to recoup costs, without accounting for monthly expenses tied to heating the garages, providing security and routine maintenance. Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based developer Nate Stencil said such costs can jeopardize an apartment's affordability when too many spaces are required and left empty. For projects like the recently opened Silver Lake Crossing Apartments on Seventh Street Northwest, near Broadway Avenue, he said providing a parking space for 75% to 80% of the apartments meets tenants' needs without unnecessarily adding to development costs. "At the end of the day, we're the people putting a ton of money at risk to do those types of projects," he said. "If we're comfortable and feel as if the parking won't be an issue to the tenants or won't cause a big enough problem where the building isn't successful, I think it should be up to the developer owner to proceed with those projects within reason." Could a developer put forward a project with zero parking? That's unlikely, especially with the largest projects, said Chris Osmundson, a representative of Minnetonka-based Onward Investors, which is planning a 283-apartment complex on the south side of Civic Center Drive . "Most banking institutions, whether it's debt or equity — and this goes for the market-rate and the affordable housing world — they also need to know that the tenants will in fact rent here," Osmundson said. "They do need to have car parking, so a lot of times debt and equity won't let you build a project with no parking." Onward's project, which is seeking state support to keep rents low, is proposed with 185 spaces for those 283 apartments. That ratio, Osmundson said, hinges on the proximity to downtown and growing transit options. Council member Miller, who himself rarely drives, said it seems like a logical step with more people finding they don't need cars. "When we think about how much of our population is not driving, it gives us more flexibility," he said. Council member Andy Friederichs, who owns three apartment buildings within walking distance of downtown, said his tenants highlight that flexibility. "Very few of our tenants have cars," he said, pointing to buildings populated with medial researchers, students, nurses and physicians seeking to reduce costs. With that insight, he tends to support reducing or eliminating parking requirements for future apartment development. "I do believe it should be up to the discretion of the owner, how they would like to do that," he said. "They are the ones assuming the risk of having no parking." If at least four council members agree, potential changes to the parking requirements could be voted on later this year, with additional updates to the unified development code.
Chicago Tribune
16-04-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Oswego plan commission voices concerns with proposed duplex development: ‘This is way too dense'
The Oswego Planning and Zoning Commission recently voted to recommend denial of a concept plan for a proposed multi-unit residential development. South Barrington-based Projades LLC proposes to build Jade Estates of Oswego, a 66-unit duplex development on about 8 acres on the southwest corner of Wolfs Crossing and Douglas roads in an unincorporated part of Kendall County near Oswego. The developer was not present for the commission's hearing on the plan. 'In my personal opinion, this is way too dense,' Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Charlie Pajor said. The commission's recommendation to deny the plan, along with village staff's conditional recommendation for approval, will be forwarded to the Oswego Village Board, which will make the final decision on the project. The proposed site plan has one access point along Douglas Road, which aligns with the Avanterra subdivision's Douglas Road entrance, Oswego Village Planner Jeff Lind said in his report to commissioners. The proposed use is consistent with the village's comprehensive plan and surrounding neighborhoods as it would provide additional housing options in the village, he said. However, staff did convey concerns over 'the lack of a second access point as well as the lack of appropriately-sized landscape buffer yards.' Staff did recommend approval of the concept plan pending the developer addressing those concerns. The Oswego Police Department and Oswego Fire Protection District likely would request a second access point to the subdivision, according to staff. The addition of those items would likely result in a decrease in units, Lind said. Pajor suggested an emergency access with a gate rather than another full access on Douglas Road. A couple of commissioners objected to an area designated as a play area in the proposed project in close proximity to a detention pond and road. Multiple concept plans for the site have been brought before the Planning and Zoning Commission, most recently Diamond Point, a proposed 52-townhome development in January 2023.
