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2000-05-03 - Plan Commission - Minutes PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION May 3,2000 Belmont Village,Proposed senior citizen assisted living facility, Buffalo Grove Town Center,4.51-acre site north of Town Place,adjacent To Buffalo Grove Road and IL Route 83,Amendment of a Planned Unit Development(P.U.D.) and Preliminary Plan and change of B-5 sub-district designation from Commercial to Residential and Approval of building elevations and materials and conceptual landscape plan Chairman Ottenheimer 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 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. Samuels Mr. Trilling Ms. Dunn Mr. Feldgreber Mr. Johnson Mr. Panitch Commissioners absent: Mr. Smith Also present: Mr. Harold Francke,Piper Marbury Rudnick&Wolf Mr. Stephen Brollier, Belmont Corp Mr. Michael Werthmann,Kenig,Lindgren, O'Hara Aboona,Inc. Mr. Timothy Nelson,Allen L. Kracower&Associates Ms. Kathy Farr,Belmont Corp Mr. Dwight Trostle,Cowhey Gudmundson Leder, Ltd Mr. Michael Werchek, Werchek Builders Ms. DeAnn Glover,Village Trustee Mr. Jeffrey Berman, Village Trustee Mr. William Raysa,Village Attorney Mr. Richard Kuenider,Village Engineer Mr. Robert Pfeil,Village Planner The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit 1: Aerial photograph of site Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page- I - Exhibit 2: Town Center Sub-District Map Exhibit 3: Preliminary Site Plan Exhibit 4: Building Rendering Exhibit 5: Material Sample Board Exhibit 6: Summarization List of Culver's Restaurant Mr. Francke stated they have appeared at three workshops to date and they would now like to walk through the site plan and specifically respond to the issues that have come out of the workshops. They would also like to respond to some of the issues that have been raised by staff in the most recent memorandum. They would also like to explore information about a user for the outlot. He stated they are excited about the fact that the petitioner has signed a letter of intent with Culver's to establish a restaurant on the outlot. Ms. Farr stated assisted living is a need driven business. The customer is typically 82 years of age,renting a residence within the community where they are provided a variety of services. As a senior housing operation there are basically three spectrums. There is independent living and nursing home care and in the middle is assisted living which provides housing for seniors who are frail but not ill. They do not need nursing home care or medical care but rather care with some of the activities of daily living. Ms. Farr noted that the Chicagoland area has the third largest senior population in the country. That is expected to rise five times faster than the entire population, growing to approximately 460,000 seniors by the years 2003. Based on the U.S. census, of this • population you will have approximately 137,000 people who are in need. There are only 3,000 existing assisted living units to meet this need and those are on average 98 percent occupied. She further stated they analyzed the Buffalo Grove area using a 9-mile ring around the site and they also had an outside study done by an independent market demand firm that used a 5-mile ring and 3 mile ring. Within this 9-mile radius they found there are 8,700 seniors in need of assisted living. There are only 575 assisted living units now to meet that need. Ms. Farr noted the outside independent firm who studied the market is called Strategy Planning Associates. They looked at a radius of 3 and 5 miles. They found that within a 3-mile ring there were 232 seniors in need and that grows to 288 by 2004. That is the number of people within the 3-mile ring. There are also people that will come from the outside. Their assumption is that 60 percent of demand would come from within the 3- mile ring and there would be another 40 percent outside of that 3-mile ring. There are only 114 units of supply within the 3-mile ring. The 5-mile ring shows 601 people in need, which grows to 725 by the year 2004. The assumption on this is that 80 percent of the people that would come to the community would come from the 5-mile ring and then you would get another 20 percent outside of that. Within that additional 2 miles they Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-2- found another 100 units for a total of 214 units that are supplying 601 people. The conclusion that the firm came to is that there is a need for this facility and that this project has merit. Ms. Farr stated this site has health care nearby, which is important to the facility. You also have the Town Center that provides a variety of services and convenience retail operations to benefit the residents. There are also residential and places of worship surrounding the site, which are important to the residents. Ms. Farr stated they believe this project is consistent with the mixed-use plan for this area. It is a great transitional use for the area if you look at the uses that surround the site. She further noted Mr. Pfeil's memo indicates that this project would be a benefit to the community and would also benefit the TIF. Ms. Farr stated Belmont Corp is a Houston based company, which develops, owns and operates assisted living communities and they are marketed and known under the name Belmont Village. They are a wholly owned affiliate of Secured Capital Group which is a multi-billion dollar company traded on the New York stock exchange that provides very good management oversight and funding for projects. Ms. Farr stated they now have four communities in operation, three under construction, two communities nearing construction and they also have several communities that are in planning now both in Chicago and in northern and southern California. She reviewed the proposed facility based on other facilities they operate. Mr. Stephen Brollier stated the site plan consists of two lots. The first is a 4.5 acre parcel for the assisted living facility and a 1.62 acre parcel for the outlot development. Within the site plan there are 81 parking spaces which has 8 landbanked spaces and 7 handicapped spaces. The actual size of the spaces is 18 1/2 x 9 and the drive aisle is 26 feet. They also show proposed and existing sidewalks that will be provided on the project. He reviewed all of these sidewalk areas. He noted they are showing fencing locations, noting several outside areas that are closed off. The fencing is a 6-foot high fence combination of ornamental metal and columns. The columns are the same color brick as the building. All fire lanes are now listed on the plans and are a result of preliminary discussions with the Fire Department. Their concern was with the ability to access all sides of the building and they are comfortable with what is reflected on the plan. The Fire Department also located fire hydrants for the project. Mr. Brollier stated the entrance into the project off of Route 83 has been reflected. He noted there is a letter from IDOT noting it is acceptable to enter the project from Route 83 with some minor modifications such as revised striping, alignment with the subdivision across the street and approaches and radii consistent with that street. IDOT has raised a question concerning how the outlot user would access to the site and they feel they can accommodate that concern. IDOT has also asked them to be as far from Route 83 as possible. He noted they are currently at 70-75 feet. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-3- Mr. Brollier stated the engineering plan has been approved with the exception of the paving section for the entrance road into the project which was deficient. In addition the paving on the site was slightly deficient. They have now modified those deficiencies to be consistent with the Village standards. Mr. Brollier stated the original detention plan has been revised to enlarge the pond to accommodate the undrained elevation. In addition to that they have revised the plan to match the existing level of the detention facility that is currently between the condominium projects. Mr. Brollier stated they were required to do a wetlands investigation study on the project. It was determined there are three very small locations probably caused by whatever has taken place on the site over the last several years. Because these threes minor areas are below the minimum .25 acre coverage, no mitigation is required and they will have to submit for a category 1 wetlands permit which is in essence only a formality. Mr. Brollier stated they have now matched the actual brick of the Town Center. They have lightened the roof composition. They have maintained the semiticious siding and the wood trim pieces. They have added coining details which are the stepped out corners of the brick at the gable sections of the building. They have added shutters on the third floor siding area. They have also included decorative balcony pieces on the second and third floors which gives a very varied look to the project. All of this works consistently with the condominium project and the retail portion of Town Center. Mr. Brollier stated the landscaping plan was reviewed by the Village Forester who begins by saying that the developer is in compliance with the landscape ordinance. One question raised by him was the size of the trees. The Village Forester has asked them to consider looking 4-inch trees. He proposed that the Village Forester and the developer's landscaper get together to select certain trees to be enlarged to 4 inches in certain areas. In that way,their landscape budget may still be kept to reasonable limits. Mr. Werthmann stated he would speak on two issues brought up by staff The first is the adequacy of the number of parking spaces provided. There are a total of 158 units with 81 parking spaces, 8 of which will be landbanked. That is a parking ratio of 0.51 parking spaces per unit. He noted they feel this is more than sufficient. Several national publications have done parking generation surveys for this type of facility. ITE indicates the average peak demand for an assisted living facility is 0.31 parking spaces per unit. Further, based on a suggestion at one of the workshops they surveyed the Sunrise assisted living facility. That facility is approximately one half the size of the proposed development. They have 78 units and they provide a total of 41 parking spaces, which is a parking ratio of 0.52. He noted they are basically providing the same parking ratio as that of the Sunrise facility. They surveyed the facility on a Sunday and a weekday and found their peak parking demand to be 24 spaces which comes out to 0.32 parking ratio which is consistent with what they have found in their own surveys as well as the ITE conclusions. Based on all of these surveys they feel very comfortable with the 81 spaces being able to provide for the peak demand of Belmont Village. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-4- Mr. Werthmann noted one of the concerns with IDOT was whether they would allow access on Route 83. The letter from them now indicates they have no problem with the access as long as it is lined up with the street across the way. They would like the developer to eliminate the median island in the middle of the access drive. This will not be a problem. They require a left turn lane which will be provided. They would like, if possible, to move the access drive a minimum of 100 feet from Route 83. Currently they are about 75-80 feet from there. IDOT understands the predicament and although they would like to see more, they have no problem with it as is. The reason they have no problem with it remaining as is because the facility generates a very minimal amount of traffic. Secondly, the amount of traffic on this new road will also be very minimal. Lastly, the location is such that this development will not have left turns that need to wait to turn into the site. Therefore, they do not have to worry about the left turns backing out into Route 83. IDOT's real concern is the eventual access drive for the outlot parcel which they would like to see at a minimum of 100-150 feet from Route 83. Mr. Francke noted that Mr. Pfeil's memo indicated that if this gets to the point of Village support of the project and an ordinance is drafted, there needs to be some kind of provision for what might happen with a possible reuse of the facility. He noted this would not be a problem. He stated there is also a request for information about the outdoor trash enclosure. He stated it will be totally enclosed and they have no difficulty in working with staff on that issue. Mr. Pfeil's memo also notes there has been no submittal of a plan for outdoor lighting. He stated it would be no problem to submit a lighting plan in the future prior to approval of the plan. Ms. Farr stated they have been working diligently to find a user for the outlot. She stated they have now signed a letter of intent with Culver's Restaurant who is interested in this site. It is a family oriented restaurant and will be a good use for this site and a good compliment for the neighborhood. Mr. Michael Werchek stated Culver's is a relatively new chain in the Illinois area. He distributed and reviewed a Culver's packet of information. He stated Culver's expects their major growth to be in northern Illinois in the next few years. He noted the restaurant has quite a following. He stated Culver's area of growth would be limited so they can control the quality and make sure that the stores are up to their standards. He stated he feels strongly in the company. The quality, cleanliness and overall attitude of the employees are stressed. He further stated that Culver's currently has 1.2 million dollars in sales and are currently a little over 1.4 million dollars per store, which has exceeded every other chain for sales per store. He noted the restaurants are only open from 10:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Culver's is more of a destination restaurant and so they feel they can afford to be somewhat off the beaten track which is what this site provides. He further noted they would expect to do at least 2 million-dollar volume at this site. He noted the average Culver store takes about 1.2-1.4 acre site in order to be able to put the 4,500 square-foot store in and to park same adequately. He noted detention will be picked up by the assisted living facility and therefore they have the entire site to be able Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-5- to put the building,parking, and landscaping in. Mr. Werchek stated he feels they will be an asset to the community. Commissioner Johnson asked about the timing of the proposed development of the commercial use in relation to the development of the assisted living center. Mr. Wercheck stated they would start as quickly as they could depending upon the Village and staff. However, there are some corporate issues that need formal approval. The biggest problem may be the colors that Culver's usually goes with. They could not get those colors approved in Vernon Hills and it is this sort of thing that would need to get approved by corporate. Commissioner Johnson noted his concerns along those lines are that it has been assumed all along that the linch pin for development of the Belmont Village facility is the development of the commercial site. He stated he is glad to see this proposal come forward, but if the commercial aspect were to fall through, he would have a'concern with the remainder of the project going forward. Commissioner Johnson stated he wants to disclose for the public record that in his professional capacity has had prior contact with both Mr. Francke and Mr. Wercheck. However,he is able to put those matters behind him. Commissioner Johnson asked about a walking path from Buffalo Grove Road. Mr. Brollier stated there is currently an existing sidewalk on Buffalo Grove Road. As Route 83 is essentially the entry of the facility and most residents will come and go from this side,he does not really know the importance of such a sidewalk. Commissioner Johnson stated he agrees with the assessment but he views the addition of a sidewalk in that location as adding to the comprehensive walking path for the overall facility and tying in this development with the rest of the Town Center facility. In that regard he would like to see such a sidewalk. Mr. Brollier stated it is not a problem. Commissioner Trilling asked if Mr. Wercheck was aware of the easement running across the property. Mr. Wercheck stated yes. He stated they have talked to the Belmont Corp engineers and they have come to the conclusion it could either be rerouted or if it happens to be where the parking lot is,they could have it in the parking lot. Commissioner Trilling asked if it is the petitioner's intention to amend the P.U.D. for the 4.5 acres only tonight and to leave the 1.6 in its current zoning. Mr. Francke stated they will defer to staffs recommendation on that. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-6- Mr. Pfeil stated the entire property, including the outlot, is now zoned in the commercial sub-district so they really need to take their petition for the assisted living facility and redesignate it to residential. Therefore, the 1.6 acres would remain commercial but it has no site plan approval and it would have to come back to the Plan Commission at a future time. Commissioner Trilling asked what the depth of the commercial outlot is and where the 100 feet requested by IDOT would occur. Mr. Werthmann stated they are about 70 feet from Route 83. He pointed out the area they would have to work on to bring it to the 100 feet IDOT is requesting. He stated with the size of the lot, it should not be a problem. Commissioner Trilling asked about the dumpster location for the assisted living facility. Mr. Brollier pointed the location. Commissioner Trilling asked if the location might be moved slightly away from the main road and inset more within the site. Mr. Brollier stated they would try to do something and in any case would have the location tastefully screened. Chairman Ottenheimer asked what material the fence will be made of. Mr. Brollier stated it is ornamental iron with brick columns. Chairman Ottenheimer asked if the petitioner would have restrictions on trash pick ups and delivery times. Mr. Brollier stated they have the ability to schedule those. He noted they try to have their deliveries happen from 9:30 am. to 2:00 p.m. The trash pick up is contingent on the size of dumpsters. They have no dumpster pick up early or late in the day. It is also scheduled so that it happens during the daylight hours. Chairman Ottenheimer stated he shares Commissioner Johnson's views concerning a recommendation for this project without the site plan for the restaurant. Mr. Pfeil stated whatever the Plan Commission does, the Village Board also has that decision as to whether they want to approve a P.U.D. amendment without the Culver's being completely planned. He stated he would have to refer that to the Village Attorney. The Plan Commission needs to assess whether it seems like the Belmont project can be effectively planned without knowing exactly how Culver's will layout. If it is believed Belmont could be planned the way it is at this point and Culver's could come back and be compatibly folded in, the Commission could proceed and complete the hearing on Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-7- Belmont, knowing Culver's will be reviewed in the future. If the Commission is not comfortable,the recommendation could include a provision to have the Culver's planning catch up to the Belmont planning. Commissioner Johnson stated he has no problem with approving this site plan contingent upon the commercial use as it has been presented. The plan would appear to be sufficiently within the Plan Commission's control so that it will adequately be folded into the overall plan. He noted his bigger concern is not the site plan as much as the continued viability of that use. He stated he is concerned with maintaining the unity of the proposal in the eventuality that the restaurant somehow goes away. Mr. Raysa stated he just asked the two Village Trustees if they believe the Board would approve Belmont without Culver's being finalized. The answer was absolutely no. Commissioner Samuels noted he does not think the Commission can make a contingent vote. Mr. Raysa stated it could be made subject to assurement. You can approve the subject development subject to approval of the outlot. Commissioner Samuels noted his agreement with Commissioner Johnson that some element of assurance is necessary, but he does not know if it should specifically be made subject to approval of that particular restaurant. Mr. Francke stated he agrees with Commissioner Johnson. However, there is a distinction between finalizing before the Culver's and the concern with tying it together and what happens if it does not succeed. Those are two different inquiries and he would ask the Board to consider resolving it in some manner that achieves the goals of the Village, but at the same time is reasonable to the petitioner, recognizing that Belmont has been working with the Village and staff for quite some time. Realizing that Culver's is at the very preliminary stages and will take quite some time before they are even in a position to resolve just the site plan issues, their concern is that they will have a problem if they cannot proceed before everything is tied down. This is saying that Belmont is on hold for at least the next 4-6 months. He noted he would rather see the issue addressed by saying this project is approved as a whole and if for some reason Culver's does not go forward, these are the ramifications. Commissioner Trilling stated he does not believe this discussion should occur during the regular meeting as to how to proceed. Mr. Raysa stated that if the Plan Commission were to approve the site plan, that approval would not go to monument signage shown on the site plan. Also, he suggested more testimony be given as to the need for the variations. Mr. Francke stated they are seeking a variation for the density because this is not a typical residential development. It is perceived in some communities as non-residential Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-8- entirely. In terms of impact, they have tried to evidence through testimony why the variation is justified. The height variation is based upon the standard that sets the prototype which includes the cupola. Mr. Brian Rubin, Vice President, Buffalo Grove Chamber of Commerce, stated he is expressing a serious concern that 4.5 acres in the B-5 Commercial sub-district be rezoned residential and requiring variations from the zoning ordinance. He noted the petitioner is a quality company with an excellent reputation and a quality product. The Buffalo Grove Chamber of Commerce would welcome them but not at this important commercial location. Culver's is welcome but not at the expense of removing over 6 acres from the sales tax rolls. The Village of Buffalo Grove has lost in the last decade alone over 44 acres of property in the Village's Comprehensive Plan designated as commercial. This does not even include the significant acreage of commercial property in the Village's Comprehensive Plan that was lost to neighboring communities. Mr. Rubin noted that over 8 percent of the Comprehensive Plan commercial property has been lost. This is all the more reason to hold on to what is left. We have already rezoned from commercial to residential for assisted living on Route 22. The result of the loss of this commercial property and sales tax revenue is to further increase the real estate tax burden on the individual residents of Buffalo Grove. Mr. Rubin stated the prior plan for this property of a hotel and banquet facility would have produced $150,000 per year alone in room tax. The banquet facility would have produced an estimated$67,000 in additional sales tax which includes the Village's home rule sales tax. We now are presented by Culver's which produce approximately $30,000 to $45,000 in sales tax revenue. The budget in the Village is funded by over 25 percent in sales tax revenue due to the businesses in this Village, not including the hotel room tax. That is in excess of 25 percent, but for the sales tax producing businesses and existing hotel,would have to come from the residents of Buffalo Grove. Mr. Rubin stated the loss of commercial property means higher individual real estate tax bills. The Village of Buffalo Grove has a Comprehensive Plan which the Plan Commission spent a great deal of time and effort on developing. The Village seeks input from residents, school districts, park district, library, Chamber of Commerce, businesses and many others in the process of developing this plan every five years. Now we are asked to scrap the designation shown on this property and asked to scrap the underlying zoning classification. Mr. Rubin stated the Buffalo Grove area Chamber of Commerce asks that the Commission not stray from the carefully thought out Comprehensive Plan without solid justification and noted what is in the best interest of the Village as a whole. That is the function and role of the carefully drawn out Comprehensive Plan. He also stressed that the current Comprehensive Plan has only been in place one year. Mr. Rubin further urged that an approved site plan for Culver's be in place before this matter goes further, as was the majority opinion of the Village Trustees at their July 12, Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-9- 1999 meeting. The minutes of the July 12th meeting are clear. This referral was made on a vote of 5 to 1, 4 of the 5 votes sending this petition to the Commission placing a condition on the referral that there would have to be simultaneous construction of a restaurant on the 1.62 acre portion of the property. Mr. Rubin noted that there might be corporate issues with this site plan for Culvers. It also appears that the petitioner, in lieu of the restaurant going ahead, wishes to offer money to be held in escrow until the petitioner goes through the motions of finding a different suitable tenant if this restaurant does not go through. This amount of money does not come close to the amount the Village would lose in revenue if the restaurant were not to go through. Mr. Rubin asked what happens to this facility if operation should cease. He asked if it is suitable for conversion to apartments or condominiums or a hotel, or is it more likely that it would remain vacant until it was torn down. Mr. Gerald Levy, President of Town Place Condominium Association, stated he is very much in favor of the assisted living plan. He noted Mr. Rubin's valid comments but stated that despite all the efforts made for Town Center, it has not been what anyone wished it could have been. Town Center at this moment shows relatively little promise to make a change. When speaking of a loss of revenue, it is usually from profitable investments. He noted the hotel and banquet hall, which never amounted to anything. He stated he cannot believe that a 1.6 acre out parcel and 4.5 residential site plan will make or break this Village in any way. He noted there is now an opportunity to go forward with a project that will bring stability and beauty to this area. It cannot hurt anything, but it can enhance the area. The fact of the matter is that there is now an opportunity to develop a vacant lot which no one has been able to come forth and due within the last ten years. Ms. Diane Garber stated she is a resident in the Cherbourg homes across Route 83. She noted her concerns with the proposed development. She stated it appears that the demand in this neighborhood is far more integral to Mr. Rubin's comments that the lack of retail space will ensure the Village is able to attract fewer and fewer retail entities. This would cause Buffalo Grove residents to shop elsewhere. This is a serious issue for the tax base. Ms. Garber further stated there is a very different taste profile in Wisconsin versus northern Illinois and she would ask Culver's to review their statistics for their restaurant. She stated she hopes the Commission chooses not to go forward with this project. Mr. Francke stated some of the comments raised by Mr. Rubin were addressed in the workshop meetings. He stated they discussed the concept of abandoning commercial use. They did go into great detail about the percentage of what this land means in terms of the commercial tax base. He stated they have talked about the fact that in 1980 and through the 80's, this parcel was actually planned by the Board and the Plan Commission as a residential parcel. It was zoned for residential use up until 1987. It was changed to Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-10- office use in 1987. It was only 2-3 years ago that the proposal came in for the hotel/banquet facility. Mr. Francke stated they had previously indicated that the economy has just gone through the longest economic upturn in the market with a strong market. Yet, throughout that period of time, the plan approved in 1997 for a hotel has amounted to nothing. He noted they have indicated the reasons why many commercial users have passed on this site. Mr. Werchek today noted why other restaurants have taken a pass on this site. In summary, Mr. Francke stated you only have to look at the properties around this parcel and how they have developed to see a change in circumstances. It is heavily residential and the Town Center properties are obviously not doing well. He further noted the length of time the property has remained vacant, doing nothing for the TIF, which directly impacts the Village, the local school districts, or the park district. Those are the changed circumstances. Commissioner Johnson stated his prior contact with Mr. Francke has been as Village Attorney for the Village of Green Oaks. Mr. Francke has represented clients on several developments in Green Oaks. He noted that Mr. Werchek has also been involved in developments in Green Oaks. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present, Chairman Ottenheimer closed the public hearing at 9:35 p.m. Respect ally sOmittted, Fay I&ub' , kecording Secretary Y: -- LESTER OTTENHEIMER, Chair Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-May 3,2000 Page-11-