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2008-11-05 - Plan Commission - Minutes Board or Commission: ❑ Plan Commission Document Type: ❑A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 11/05/2008 Type of Meeting: PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION November 5, 2008 Waterbury Place Subdivision Amendment of Planned Unit Development concerning rowhome and townhome buildings along Apple Hill Lane Chairman Ottenheimer called the hearing to order at 7:30 p.m. in the Village Council Chambers, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Chairman Ottenheimer 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 Ottenheimer Mr. Smith Ms. Bocek Mr. Stark Mr. Cohn Ms. Myer Mr. Weinstein Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Mr. Teplinsky Also present: Mr. Steve Spinell, Edward R. James Homes Mr. Scott Freres, The Lakota Group, Inc. Mr. Brad Bacilek, Edward R. James Homes Mr. William Raysa, Village Attorney Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit A: Proposed Site Plan dated October 15, 2008 Exhibit B: Original Site Plan Exhibit C: Crossection view through Apple Hill Ln dated October 15, 2008 Exhibit D: Street front comparison dated October 15, 2008 Exhibit E: Memo from Mr. Robert Pfeil to the Plan Commission dated October 31, 2008 Mr. Spinell stated they are petitioning for a product substitution toward the south end of the property. He stated they would like to have the flexibility to either construct the 3-story townhomes or the row homes on the south portion of the site. The reason for this is with market conditions the way they are and what they are learning about the consumer with the units up against the railroad tracks is that it would be better to market a product that has the garages toward the alley way and the railroad tracks with an interior courtyard. Also having a 2-story structure with a basement opens up a larger market to sell the product versus a 3-story townhome. Mr. Scott Freres stated the operative word is flexibility to allow two product styles to be interchanged into the same land plan. He reviewed the original site plan noting that as they have moved down to the south there is the desire to reflect the conditions of the market and some of the concerns about the railroad. In order to do that the request they seek is a variance in relaxation of the front yard setback, particularly along the west side of Apple Hill. In doing so they also will be providing the same 35 foot rear yard setback. As part of their plan in asking for this relief it will bring the front yard to 10 feet instead of 25 feet setback. There will be no encroachment with staircases as there are on the townhome and rowhomes on the original plan. Mr. Freres reviewed the proposed rowhome condition which will brought down to the grade so there will be a minimal step up and no stairs off that condition and brought to within 10 feet of the front yard. Landscaping design and all the components everywhere else will be consistent here whereas there is more grass space in front of the other rowhomes to the north of the project, there will be more perennials, shrubs and groundcover here. The tuck under or townhome condition does have a staircase coming down but that staircase will no longer encroach into what was the 25 foot front yard setback and will come to no further than the 10 foot front yard setback they are requesting. Both of the rear yard setbacks stay the same as they are. Mr. Freres reviewed a street front comparison of a 25 foot front yard setback and a 10 foot front yard setback. The difference will be in the amount of grass that is in those two areas but it is essentially the same streetscape character as all the other areas. The tradeoff in this particular product is having more rear yard living space that is protected and buffered from the tracks by a detached garage. Commissioner Stark noted that the developer is basically going from a maximum of 24 units to a minimum of 12. Mr. Spinell stated there would be 22 units. The approved plan allows 24 units, and the number will be reduced to 22 if the rowhome plan is built. Commissioner Stark asked if the duplex homes across the street are still scheduled to be built. Mr. Spinell stated yes. Commissioner Weinstein stated he likes the presentation of 2 townhomes and 2 rowhomes but he does not want to see a three and one combination. He has no problem with 4 and 0 or 2 and 2. Mr. Spinell stated most likely it would end up being 2 and 2 because they have been selling at a pace or there would be an equal pace of rowhome versus townhome although they do believe that if they get the approval for putting the rowhomes in this location it would accelerate the pace of their sales. He stated they would still like to have the flexibility of 3 and 1 if they could, however, instead of just plopping one in the middle perhaps one on one side or the other versus 2 and 2 would be good. Commissioner Weinstein asked if they would agree not to put one rowhome or townhome in the middle. Mr. Spinell said this is a fair request, and he stated that it is an acceptable condition of approval. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present, Chairman Ottenheimer closed the public hearing at 7:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: LESTER OTTENHEIMER, Chair Board or Commission: ❑ Plan Commission Document Type: 0 A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 11/05/2008 Type of Meeting: ❑ Regular Meeting REGULAR MEETING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION November 5, 2008 Waterbury Place subdivision—Amendment of Planned Unit Development concerning rowhome and townhome buildings Along Apple Hill Lane Discussion of Village Comprehensive Plan Update Chairman Ottenheimer called the meeting to order at 7:50 p.m. in the Village Council Chambers, Buffalo Grove Municipal Building, 50 Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Commissioners present: Chairman Ottenheimer Mr. Smith Ms. Bocek Mr. Stark Mr. Cohn Ms. Myer Mr. Weinstein Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Mr. Teplinsky Also present: APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Bocek to approve the minutes of the public hearing of October 15, 2008. All Commissioners were in favor of the motion and the motion passed unanimously. Moved by Commissioner Smith, seconded by Commissioner Stark to approve the regular meeting minutes of October 15, 2008. All Commissioners were in favor of the motion and the motion passed unanimously. COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS Commissioner Stark attended the Village board meeting on November 3, 2008 and stated the Village Board re-authorized the special use three child care homes and they approved a special use for Amber Music and Dance facility on Lexington Drive. WATERBURY PLACE SUBDIVISION — AMENDMENT OF PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT CONCERNING ROWHOME AND TOWNHOME BUILDINGS ALONG APPLE HILL LANE Moved by Commissioner Smith, seconded by Commissioner Weinstein to recommend approval to the Village Board of an amendment of the Planned Unit Development and Preliminary Plan in the R-9 District with the following variation pursuant to the proposed site plan: ZONING ORDINANCE— Section 17.40.050.C. (to allow a front yard setback of 10 feet instead of 25 feet for four buildings). The petitioner proposes to construct rowhome or townhome buildings along the west side of Apple Hill Lane with a front yard of 10 feet, subject to the condition that if the developer decides to construct three buildings of one type and one building of the other type, the single building should not be located between buildings of the other type. Chairman Ottenheimer called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Smith, Bocek, Stark, Cohn, Myer, Weinstein, Ottenheimer NAYS: None ABSENT: Khan, Teplinsky ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 7 to 0. DISCUSSION OF VILLAGE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE Mr. Pfeil noted that the Buffalo Grove Park District has started a comprehensive plan concerning Park District facilities and their vision for future needs. The Park District will evaluate possible uses for the Didier farm on Aptakisic Road as part of the planning process. Mr. Pfeil commented that the Village's planning for future use of the Didier farm has focused on extensive single-family development, but in his opinion other land use scenarios should be explored. He noted that the Lake County Framework Plan currently designates the Didier farm for agricultural use. Mr. Pfeil suggested that a strong case could be made that organic farming or other specialty farming use would be the best land use. Chairman Ottenheimer concurred that considering uses other than single—family residential makes very good sense, and he noted that mixed use development with residential and commercial, with appropriate land plans, should be evaluated for the Aptakisic Road corridor. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT—None FUTURE AGENDA SCHEDULE—None Mr. Pfeil stated the next scheduled meeting will be held on November 19, 2008. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS -None STAFF REPORT—None NEW BUSINESS—None ADJOURNMENT— Moved by Commissioner Smith, seconded by Commissioner Bocek and carried unanimously to adjourn. Chairman Ottenheimer adjourned the meeting at 7:59 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: LESTER OTTENHEIMER, Chair