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2013-08-07 - Plan Commission - Minutes Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: ❑A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/07/2013 Type of Meeting: PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 7, 2013 Body Impact, 1624 Barclay Blvd - Special Use for a Recreation facility in the Industrial District Chairman Smith called the hearing to order at 7:30 p.m. in the Village council Chambers, Buffalo Grove Municipal building, 50 Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Chairman Smith read the Notice of Public Hearing as published in the Buffalo Grove Daily Herald, explained the procedure to be followed for the public hearing, and swore in all persons who wished to give testimony. Commissioners present: Chairman Smith Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Mr. Stark Mr. Matthews Also present: Dr. Angel Santiago, Body Impact Limited Dr. Alexander Ginzburg Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. Mike Terson, Village Trustee Mr. Jeff Stein, Village Attorney Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner Dr. Santiago stated the space is proposed for a wellness center for everyone from pediatrics to geriatrics. They hope to help out the general population by having more cost effective training including a great deal of one on one work with people. They are in a 2,000 square foot facility and have a close rehab referral based operation. Dr. Santiago stated their hours of operation are from 6 am in the morning to about 9 pm in the evening which may overlap to about 10:00 pm. This is from Monday to Thursday. Fridays will be about 7 am to 6 pm and Saturdays they are looking to be there from 7 am to 2 pm. He noted they are looking to have about nine people in the morning from 6-9 am. Dr. Santiago noted for parking they have total use of approximately 150 parking spaces with about another 30 spaces in the back area. Dr. Santiago noted they are also looking to do courses down the line in self defense. Dr. Ginzburg stated they do not want a retail type of destination. They require a certain amount of equipment which requires space. He also noted his hours are not the same as Dr. Santiago's. He is usually not at the facility in the mornings and specializes in family preparedness. Dr. Ginzburg stated they are more than willing to work with all Village staff on making the hours and parking suitable for all. Dr. Santiago added that he is currently working with school District 214 and some of their students on how to make better choices. This is also something they will be doing at this facility on a one on one basis. Chairman Smith asked the petitioner to go over the special use criteria. 1. Dr. Santiago stated the idea that their operation would in any way be harmful or detrimental to the public health is totally unethical 2. Dr. Santiago stated they chose this location for its appropriate size for the operations they will be performing and the safety they require. 3. Dr. Santiago noted their property is somewhat secluded in the back and is located near other medical entities with which they have had constant discussions about cross referencing and referrals down the line. Dr. Ginzburg further noted they carry malpractice insurance and carry rental insurance and they intend to carry an additional rider to cover visitors at the premises. 4. Dr. Santiago stated the answer to question number 4 has already been addressed in the answer to question number 3. 5. Adequate utilities are available in the facility which currently has two bathrooms. 6. Parking show they have 150 spots as well as another 30 spots in the back of the building. Dr. Ginzburg stated once again they are more than willing to work with the Village and the staff as to scheduling and so on so as not to create any traffic problems. Commissioner Cohn asked for an explanation of what the company is and what it is actually doing. Dr. Santiago was formed in 2003 in response to a need to address both health problems and fitness and rehab issues. They are working with people with small ailments to post rehab. Dr. Ginzburg stated they have discussed changing the name of the company to better describe their activities which can be somewhat confusing. Commissioner Cohn noted that broadly the facility will be fitness, health and welfare and within those categories the petitioners will be doing things such as fitness, self defense, family preparedness and chiropractor and rehab. Commissioner Cohn asked to go through the numbers on the parking and the times to make sure the math works. It is his understanding that there are a total of 180 parking spaces at the facility. There are 10 units at this building and the petitioners have 7 spaces assigned to them by the landlord. Dr. Santiago noted that parking is on a first come, first served basis. Commissioner Cohn noted the presumption is the 7 parking spaces will be used by the petitioner's clients. Dr. Ginzburg noted that their work starts at 6 am to 9 am and presumably no one else will be starting during those hours. Commissioner Cohn asked how many spaces are being used by all the other spaces during regular business hours. Dr. Ginzburg stated he is not really sure. Commissioner Cohn stated he is trying to figure out the maximum number of people they are going to have and how many spaces are going to be used during that maximum time. Then when the classes start how many spaces are going to be used and how many spaces will the other tenants use. Dr. Ginzburg stated classes will only be conducted on Saturday mornings when nothing at the facility is busy. Commissioner Cohn noted that from 9 to 6 pm when the other business are active there should be a low number of people and they will have plenty of parking spaces. Commissioner Weinstein noted the petition is for personal training and related recreational activities in an Industrial District although what he is hearing is not recreational. He asked if there is a component that is medical in nature. Dr. Santiago stated there will rehab for patients, such as post-surgery or related to other medical treatment. Commissioner Weinstein noted that the petition is listed as a recreation use and he is just trying to make sure what specifically needs to be done here. Mr. Pfeil commented that in the Industrial District list of uses, a recreation facility can be approved as a special use. When a use is reviewed by the Building and Zoning Department, a determination is made concerning whether it is permitted, or if a special use is necessary. Medical offices are permitted in the Industrial District; recreational uses require a special use. Personal training and fitness activities are considered to be recreational. Some operations are a mix of medical and recreation. The recreation component requires a special use. Commissioner Cohn asked if the Plan Commission grants a special use for a recreational use and they are doing medical or quasi medical activities there but the permit says special use for recreation, does it really fit or should the Commission be more particular in what the special use ordinance will say. Mr. Stein stated the medical use is a permitted use in the Industrial District so Body Impact would be allowed to provide medical services without a special use. The additional physical training, fitness activities and martial arts training require a special use. Commissioner Goldspiel asked how many staff people will be at the facility in addition to the 9 clients per hour. Dr. Santiago stated staff is himself and possibly one other person. Commissioner Goldspiel stated he does not feel this use fits well within the way the Rogers Center has been built. The Rogers Center is basically a lot of small commercial operations which shut down in the evenings and you are proposing to be there until about 10 pm. Dr. Ginzburg stated they might be there for meetings that may go that late. Commissioner Goldspiel noted that this part of the building is very isolated and he wonders about the safety issues for clients. Dr. Ginzburg noted that is a good point but that most operations would take place in the mornings. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if perhaps some auxiliary lighting should be provided for those times when someone will be there late. Dr. Ginzburg noted there will be security cameras. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if people will be using the front entrance and the back entrance. Dr. Ginzburg noted that so far they are planning to use the front and not the back. Commissioner Johnson asked if the petitioner is already operating at the facility. Dr. Santiago stated he is seeing clients for medical services. Commissioner Johnson noted that the Commission is here tonight just approving the special use to add the fitness training and related classes. There being no further comments or questions from anyone present, Chairman Smith closed the public hearing at 8:25 p.m. Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: ❑A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/07/2013 Type of Meeting: PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 7, 2013 Torah Academy, 380 Half Day Rd. -Amendment of Village Zoning Ordinance concerning elementary school as a special use in Business Districts and approval of a special use for an Elementary school in the B-3 District Chairman Smith called the hearing to order at 8:25 p.m. in the Village Council Chambers, Buffalo Grove Municipal building, 50 Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Chairman Smith read the Notice of Public Hearing as published in the Buffalo Grove Daily Herald, explained the procedure to be followed for the public hearing, and swore in all persons who wished to give testimony. Commissioners present: Chairman Smith Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Mr. Stark Mr. Matthews Also present: Mr. Lawrence Freedman, Ash, Anos, Freedman & Logan, L.L.C. Rabbi Shimon Zehnwirth Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Mike Terson, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. Jeff Stein, Village Attorney Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit 1: Aerial view of 2,500 square foot storage area Exhibit 2: Memo from Mr. Pfeil to the Plan Commission dated August 1. 2013 Exhibit 3: Email dated August 7, 2013 to the Plan Commission Mr. Freedman stated Torah Academy is proposing to sub-lease a portion of the property which is currently under lease by the JCC and the proposed use is as an elementary school. This require a text amendment in order to include an elementary school as either a permitted or special use in the B-3 District and assuming it is a special use to recommend the granting of such a special use to Torah Academy. Mr. Freedman stated they agree with the suggestion in the staff report that a special use would be more appropriate than a permitted use. He noted that Torah Academy has operated in the Village for the last four years up until this June at 225 McHenry Road at the Beth Am Synagogue. The synagogue recently sold the building to the Park District and as a result must vacate the premises. They anticipate about two dozen students from ages 3-11 up to the fourth and fifth grade. This fairly similar to what was at the Beth Am location except the pre-school there was for a bit younger child. They had two year olds and the significance of that is that if you have two year olds you need DCFS licensing and they do not plan on having 2 year olds here. If they did they would obviously have to obtain State licensing to do that and they understand that. Mr. Freedman noted it is anticipated that at any given time the number of staff people on site would be five and the hours of operation are primarily weekdays Monday through Friday and the classes start at 8:30 and people start getting there about 8:00 or 8:15 a.m. Classes run to about 3:45. There is no Saturday activity. There could be, although they are not sure that they will have a Sunday school class. If they do this the hours would be 9:00 to 12:00 and would have a slightly larger attendance. Instead of having about two dozen people there would probably be about 50 children there. Mr. Freedman noted he has another issue that is not in the packet that the petitioner is asking tonight to refer to the Plan Commission. This is not an essential component of the proposal but it was something that up until today he believed it was merely part of the permitting process and was not aware that this was part of the special use process if, in fact, he wanted to have it. It is basically a form of storage which would be very helpful. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated their classrooms occupy the entire space and are very snug and there is no storage available in the space. He pointed out the area considered for storage in the rear of the building where there is two rows of parking where about 50 cars can park. They would like to store things like play equipment or music equipment or arts and crafts equipment for their use. It would require one or two parking spaces where they could put a storage container during their short term lease. They have shipping containers that are wind proof and water tight which they could rent. He further noted that he has never seen more than 7 or 8 cars parked in the back there. Mr. Freedman expanded on the time frame noting that the JCC lease runs until June of next year and has informed the owner of the center that they do not intend to renew their lease for this part of the premises. They will renew their lease but just not for this part that they would be sub-leasing here. In all likelihood they will not lease this area separately to them after May. So this is probably going to be relatively short term occupancy. He further noted that there is the possibility if Inland has difficulty in leasing this portion of the JCC space as part of a larger space to someone else they would then reconsider and extend this occupancy. Mr. Freedman reviewed the special use criteria noting the following: 1. They have demonstrated there is a need in the area given the fact that they have been in the Village and operating with this exact use for the last four years. It demonstrated in operating that facility with surrounding commercial at the prior location that they are compatible with those types of uses and did not have a deleterious effect either on those kinds of uses or the general community. 2. This property is located in an existing shopping center which already has sufficient access and parking, particularly adequate for the level of intensity with only 24 students and day time operations. 3. They have demonstrated by their existence with comparable surrounding uses that this will be compatible and will not have a negative effect. 4. The property is fully developed so there is no question of impeding further development. 5. Adequate utilities, roads drainage and other necessary facilities have already been provided within the existing shopping center. 6. The center has already been developed with adequate parking and access and the intensity of this proposed use will not require that any additions be made. Commissioner Johnson asked if there any activities currently permitted at the JCC that would be similar to those being proposed by Torah Academy. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated there are pre-school activities that are identical. Commissioner Johnson asked if the Torah Academy students would be entering through the JCC main entrance off the parking lot. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated the 380 address has its own front and rear door. Commissioner Johnson asked if students dropped off by their parents. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated yes. Commissioner Johnson asked if there are safety concerns that are built into school uses that would need to be included here because it is a shopping center and is not really a school zone which has certain protections like the cell phone laws, etc. Mr. Freedman noted he actually represented the JCC when they came for the special use. There was a lot of discussion at that time about how it would be compatible with the center and it was determined that based on the location and based on the pick ups and drop offs they would be doing those concerns were addressed. He further noted that since then he is assuming there have been no problems. He would suggest that this operation would not be that dissimilar. Mr. Freedman noted that the people will be coming in every day and will know the situation. Parents will know whether to walk a child in or not and if assistance is needed they will provide it. They do not see this as a problem and once again they are dealing with people who are going to understand exactly what is going on. In addition you are talking about a drop off time in the morning of 8 a.m. or 8:15 a.m. when the center is not very active. Commissioner Weinstein related that parents do not particularly like to park and come in and he can envision 30 cars lined up at the curb and that would not work very well here and asked the petitioner to address the pick up and drop off for larger scale numbers here. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated he can only refer to his own experience from the past where parents have parked their cars and were told there is no lane for pick up so cars must be parked. We happen to encourage parents to come in and take a class also. There is, therefore, more of a tendency to park then. He stated their experience has been that they are parking their cars when coming in and at pick up time as well. Commissioner Weinstein asked if this location is going to be conducive because of space limitations for those adult classes and having people in if you have 50 students on any given Sunday. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated it will be tight but he feels the parking will be adequate. Commissioner Weinstein noted it is not the parking he is concerned about but more so the curbside pick up and drop off. When you have kids in the 3" 4`h and 5`h grade parents tend to be a bit more lenient about them just coming in and out. Rabbi Zehnwirth noted that the traffic actually goes by the curb and you cannot physically stand there because you are blocking traffic then. He further noted they would be very strong about not allowing that themselves. Commissioner Weinstein asked about the storage container size as he might like to have some limitations on size. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated it is a standard shipping container size of 12 feet long, 7 '/2 feet high and 8 feet wide. Commissioner Weinstein noted his suggestion would be to put a limitation on that size so that they do not just ok storage in general. Chairman Smith asked Mr. Pfeil to follow up on this. Mr. Pfeil commented that the approval for this type of storage would be as a temporary use. This type of outside storage is not allowed in business districts other than for short-term situations. The storage units will not be allowed as a permanent fixture on the property. Chairman Smith asked if we have a definition on temporary use. Mr. Pfeil noted that the special use ordinance can set time limits for both the storage and the school use. Mr. Freedman stated they would have no problem if the Commission put duration on it sometime after June of next year. If it seems it will be as temporary as they think it will be it is a moot point and if not they will come back to the Village and ask that it be extended and it could obviously be reconsidered as to the temporary storage. Commissioner Goldspiel asked about the ages of students and how many of the students go a full day. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated the majority of the students are a full day but some of the pre-school kids may go a half day. Commissioner Goldspiel noted the Beth Am facility had some outdoor play facilities. He asked if there would be any here. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated the JCC has specified they will allow them to use their outdoor play area and their gym for specified hours. Commissioner Goldspiel asked how the students would access the play area. Rabbi Zehnwirth noted there is a door out front by the sidewalk which is kept locked which we will use. Mr. Freedman noted the lease gives a certain time during the day that they can use these facilities so that it does not interfere with JCC activities. Commissioner Goldspiel asked how long that time was. Rabbi Zehnwirth noted it was about an hour. Chairman Smith noted this just does not look like a good fit and it is not ideal situation. He asked if there was no other place they could find. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated it is very difficult to find in Buffalo Grove a building that is suitable for a school. He stated they have been searching for months and it has been very challenging. Chairman Smith asked what would change in June or what will happen. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated they are starting right now to look and find something for next year. If need be they will move out of Buffalo Grove but would rather not do that. Mr. Freedman noted they are not excluding a site they would own so it is not just a rental they are searching for. Chairman Smith stated from his point of view he would be willing to entertain this possibly for a temporary situation until June but if it came back he would probably be against it. Commissioner Goldspiel stated he agrees with Chairman Smith. Mr. Stein noted it would be easier to do two separate motions; one to add the definition and then one to grant the special use. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present, Chairman Smith closed the public hearing at 8:50 p.m. Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: 0 A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/07/2013 Type of Meeting: ❑ Regular Meeting REGULAR MEETING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 7, 2013 Torah Academy, 380 Half Day Rd -Amendment of Village Zoning Ordinance concerning elementary school as a special use In Business Districts and approval of a special use for an Elementary school in the B-3 Body Impact, 1624 Barclay Blvd - Special Use for a recreation Facility in the Industrial District Chairman Smith called the meeting to order at 8:50 p.m. in the Village Council Chambers, Buffalo Grove Municipal Building, 50 Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Commissioners present: Chairman Smith Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Mr. Stark Mr. Matthews Also present: Mr. Lawrence Freedman, Ash, Anos, Freedman & Logan Rabbi Shimon Zehnwirth Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Mike Terson, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. Jeff Stein, Village Attorney Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Johnson to approve the minutes of the public hearing of June 5, 2013. Commissioner Goldspiel noted a typographical error on page 3, the fourth paragraph from the bottom and page 4. All Commissioners were in favor of the amended motion and the motion passed with Commissioners Cohn and Smith abstaining. Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Johnson to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of June 5, 2013. All Commissioners were in favor of the motion and the motion passed unanimously with Commissioners Cohn and Smith abstaining. COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS Commissioner Goldspiel attended the Village Board meeting on July 15, 2013 noting there was a Sign Code variation for the Cambridge Commons shopping center and a driveway apron variation for a property on Chevy Chase Drive. The main referral was the Torah Academy which is on the August 7 Plan Commission agenda. BODY IMPACT, 1624 BARCLAY BLVD - SPECIAL USE FOR A RECREATION FACILITY IN THE INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Cohn for a positive recommendation to the Board of Trustees for the petitioner to conduct personal training and related recreation activities in the Industrial District for the property at 1624 Barclay Boulevard. Commissioner Goldspiel stated he feels it is important that the petitioner said they would undertake the review of security for items such as outside lighting, and he would like the Commission to be advised about what they actually come up with. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Cohn, Weinstein, Johnson, Goldspiel, Smith NAYS: None ABSENT: Khan, Stark, Matthews ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 5 to 0. TORAH ACADEMY, 380 HALF DAY RD - AMENDMENT OF VILLAGE ZONING ORDINANCE CONCERNING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AS A SPECIAL USE IN BUSINESS DISTRICTS AND APPROVAL OF A SPECIAL USE FOR AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN THE B-3 DISTRICT Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Johnson for a positive recommendation to the Board that the zoning ordinance be amended to add a definition of elementary and preschool school use as a special use in the B-2 District pursuant to the email of August 7, 2013 from Robert Pfeil to the Plan Commission. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Cohn, Weinstein, Johnson, Smith NAYS: Goldspiel ABSENT: Khan, Stark, Matthews ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 4 to 1. Moved by Commissioner Weinstein for a positive recommendation to the Board for the petitioner's petition to operate a special use in an elementary school in the B-3 Business District at the property at 380 Half Day Road in the Woodland Commons shopping center with the following conditions: 1. That the proposed storage container be located at the back of the premises and as a shipping container of standard size approximately 20 feet long, 8 feet wide and 7 feet high which cannot be located on the premises after June 10, 2014 without further affirmation from the Village. 2. That there be no curbside drop off and pick up of students at the premises. Chairman Smith asked if Commissioner Weinstein wanted to make this a temporary approval of this use for June 10`h as well or just the storage facility. Chairman Smith asked if there was a second to Commissioner Weinstein's motion. There was no second. Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Johnson for a positive recommendation to the Board for the petitioner's petition to add an elementary school as a special use at the property at 380 Half Day Road in Woodland Commons shopping center in the B-3 District with the following conditions. 1. That they will be allowed two storage containers at the back of the property of standard shipping container size which is approximately 20 feet long, 8 feet wide and 7 feet high which storage containers cannot be used on the premises after June 10, 2014. 2. That there be no curbside drop off and pick up at the premises. 3. That the special use shall expire in totality on June 10, 2014. Commissioner Goldspiel asked the petitioner if they had thought about renting a house. Rabbi Zehnwirth stated it would not be enough room and parents would not be overly impressed with that. Commissioner Weinstein stated that regarding the temporary nature of the proposal means to him that the use is similar to what the premises are already being used for and so a school is not much of a concern for him. The outdoor storage is what he is more concerned about and noted that if the petitioner did come back next year and request something he would probably be opposed to anything regarding that storage container but he personally would not have an objection to extending the school use. Commissioner Cohn stated he had no problem with the motion and will be voting yes. However, it is important to have facilities of this type in the community and he would encourage all Village representatives to do everything they can to help find the petitioner a home. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Cohn, Weinstein, Johnson, Smith NAYS: Goldspiel ABSENT: Khan, Stark, Matthews ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 4 to 1. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT- None FUTURE AGENDA SCHEDULE Mr. Pfeil stated the next meeting will be August 21, 2013. STAFF REPORT- None NEW BUSINESS - None ADJOURNMENT Moved by Commissioner Cohn, seconded by Commissioner Weinstein and carried unanimously to adjourn. Chairman Smith adjourned the meeting at 8:55 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: ERIC SMITH, Chair