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2017-04-05 - Planning and Zoning Commission - Minutes04/5/2017 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION OF THE VILLAGE OF BUFFALO GROVE HELD IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 50 RAUPP BOULEVARD, BUFFALO GROVE, ILLINOIS ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017 Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 7:30 PM by Commissioner Eric Smith Public Hearings/Items For Consideration 1. Consider Approval of a Rezoning to R6A and R9 Planned Development with Variations for the Link Crossing Subdivision Located on the Vacant 50 Acres South of Brandywine Lane, West of Meridian Way and East of Buffalo Grove Road (16802 W Aptakisic Road) (Trustee Berman) (Staff Contact: Chris Stilling) Lawrence Freedman, James Truesdale, John Isherwood, Randall Wilt, Zorn Melatinavic, Javier Milan, Mark Korinski, Steve Kaminski were sworn in. The petitioner introduced the case. Mr. Truesdale gave introductory remarks and an overview of the plan. Mr. Korinski reviewed the site plan and details. Mr. Isherwood detailed the marketing needs for the development. The architecture was also reviewed. Mr. Stilling said that School District 102 has tentetively accepted the terms of the impact fee agreement. A lot of the plans for the Prairie Grove Park were done at the recommendation of the Park District. Commissioner Goldspiel asked what a pickleball court was. The petitioner said that it was a small court that uses a small wiffleball-type ball. Mr. Stilling said that bike paths and pickleball courts were requests by the Park District. Commissioner Goldspiel asked what the maintenance fee for the units would be. The petitioner said that the two and three story homes would be a few hundred dollars per month as they would take care of roofs, siding, etc. The single-family home fees would be lower to go toward landscaping and related maintenance. Commissioner Goldspiel did not note any place for maintenance equipment. The petitioner is partnered with a management company that would manage this with the Association once formed. Most of the equipment will be held offsite. Commissioner Cesario asked about the 18 conditions listed in the Staff Report. The petitioner said that this had been discussed with Staff; he hoped to still discuss vinyl siding with Staff. Beyond that, conditions were acceptable. He also hoped the architecture would be included as part of the annexation agreement to speed the process. Mr. Stilling responded that he did not believe vinyl siding had been approved for other residential projects in recent history. He also had some concerns about elevations. He wanted to get Commission feedback on these matters. Mr. Stilling and the petitioner agreed to continue working together on this. Commissioner Cesario said that the off-driveway parking options had improved. Condition L addressed this, and he asked if this was a broad or narrow issue. Mr. Stilling 04/5/2017 said that there was some potential conflict with the largest fire truck; however, these templates would be revised so proper signage could be posted. This would be consistent with Village Code. Commissioner Lesser asked the petitioner to walk him through the ingress and egress points. The petitioner reviewed the access on Buffalo Grove Road by Churchill Park. The southern access points would be developed as needed with the development of the future commercial parcel. Commissioner Lesser asked about the pedestrian walkways and bike paths. The petitioner reviewed both, which were incorporated with throughout the site and under the guidance of the Park District. Commissioner Lesser said that all of the townhomes and row homes had direct access to sidewalks; however, not all of the cluster homes had direct access to sidewalks. There was some discussion regarding this issue. Commissioner Moodhe asked if the private walks would be concrete. The petitioner said that the 8-foot bike paths would be asphalt; everything else would be concrete. Commissioner Moodhe said that the price point was getting closer to higher-end homes. The petitioner said that these types of products were successful in neighboring properties. There was some discussion regarding the architecture and elevations as well. Commissioner Moodhe asked if the impact fee would fluctuate. The petitioner said yes that this was based on the number of bedrooms in the unit. The School District and Park District received an explanation of how these impact fees vary by bedroom size. Commissioner Moodhe asked Mr. Monaco asked if any of the homes would end up in a floodplain. Mr. Monaco said that no, the homes would be elevated out of the fl oodplain. Commissioner Khan discussed the exhibit showcasing the bike paths and walkways, which indicated which bike paths were public vs private. He said that the average homeowner would not know the difference of which sidewalks belong to whom. He felt that this would create confusion particularly for landscaping and snow plow. The petitioner said that there would be covenants that spell out ownership. Mr. Stilling added that a similar situation had happened with the Easton Townhomes, and there would be agreements as part of the closing on a home. There was discussion of including the map as part of the covenants to help clarify this issue. Commissioner Khan asked if there were any wetlands on the site. The petitioner showed where wetlands were located and confirmed that the Army Corps of Engineers had jurisdiction over this. It was determined that there was no impact on the wetlands though. There was some discussion regarding instructions for maintenance to the Homeowners Association. The petitioner said that this was a requirement for the permit process. Commissioner Khan asked about the traffic report as he thought this was a part of a bigger report. Mr. Milan agreed and said he just gave the commission what was needed. Commissioner Khan asked for clarification on what table was for existing conditions and 04/5/2017 which one was for once the development was complete. There was some discussion regarding the plans for Buffalo Grove Road. Commissioner Weinstein said that the overall conclusion was that with 200 u nits, there would be minimal impact on Brandywye and Olive Hill. Prairie Road intersection with Olive Hill had a typographical error on the increase in delay. There was some discussion on impacts on Buffalo Grove Road. Commissioner Weinstein asked about the standards of variations. The petitioner said that there was a supplement for the standards not addressed. The supplement was reviewed for the commission. Commissioner Goldspiel asked about clustering to provide more open space. He said that the open space was naturalized detention area and asked how clustering helps since detention could not be used. The petitioner said that this was used as passive space and that they worked on this open space with the Park District. Chairman Smith entered the staff report as Exhibit One. (Meeting break for five minutes.) Mike Weisner (156 Ironside Court) thanked the Board and Village for their work. He asked about what the impact would be on existing neighbors. He was also concerned that this was being marketed to the over 55 demographic; he did not think three-story townhomes would be good for this market. He also asked about the main entrance along Brandywyn and how this would have a minimal impact. The Buffalo Grove Road improvement was not scheduled until 2020 or 2021 as of now. He did not feel that there was safe and moveable traffic there now. Currently, activity at Meridian School creates back ups (especially for parking) to Ironwood Court. The environment study did not seem take into consideration the mature trees and the animal habitats by the creek that would be disrupted. He liked the paths but felt that they were not connected to other paths. Mr. Weisner asked where the snow went when it was plowed. He was also concerned about park accessibility. He said that the market value of the homes start at $390,000, and this would put it at a different market than what is being proposed. He did not understand how the numbers worked out for students within the School District. Keith Donaldson (89 Chestnut Terrace) said that he did not feel that there was enough notice about the public hearing. He also said that notices were only sent out to the area immediate surrounding the development, but he felt it would affect the entire Stevenson School District. He said that the selling price was for Buffalo Grove in totality, and he noted that there was a stark difference between those north and south of Lake-Cook Road. He said that the three-story units were on the marketing near Park City, Utah for up to 16 months because he was told “stairs don’t sell”. He said that this elevation and high density did not fit in the area. He liked the green area, but he felt that a lot of it was floodplain that could not be built on anyway. He noted that his calculations show this development to be four homes per acre, but his numbers show six homes per acre if you take unusable space into account. He asked that this be looked at more closely. He said when older retirees leave, generally they do not stay in this high-tax area. He felt that this development would be more attractive to those looking to get into the schools. Regarding the maintenance fees, he did not feel that a fee of “a few hundred dollars” was incorrect 04/5/2017 and asked if this would be examined. He briefly also addressed the speed of vehicles in the area. Albert Modahue (197 Hoffman) said that he did not disagree with developing this property, but it had to be done responsibly. He did not feel that this should be zoned with the proposed zoning district as this was too much with too l ittle input from the public. He also had not seen any information from the school. He had concerns about credit being sought for handling water runoff. He believed that these homes would be more attractive to parents with school-aged kids than those of retirement age. He thought that either an age restriction be added or flexibility be given if the market assumptions were wrong. He noted that Pulte gave a sizeable donation was given to the Park District. Now he did not understand how that parcel could be given away for land improvements. This was the first opportunity that the Easthaven group had had to review the documents and comment. Kyle Olson (738 Aspen) said that he did not live in the area but was a potential buyer. He said that these surrounding areas have begun to look less attractive because of this plan. This was such a different property than those around it. He said that this plan had been in development for a while without public input. He also briefly discussed the markets being targeted. Regarding the Homeowners Association, he agreed that this would likely get expensive. He liked the idea of maintenance-free living, but he did not think this was going to be available for a reasonable price. He said that the walkability score was low and would not attract millennials. He spoke about the student impact and noted that a previous meeting had requested that the numbers for the School District be reviewed again. He also did not believe that the exterior elements justified the projected house price. Mr. Weisner asked why the main entrance was aligned with Ironwood Court as it did not seem to match. He asked if the cul-de-sacs were big enough for fire engines or garbage trucks. Mr. Stilling said that the firetrucks were larger and these sizes did mee t the specifications needed. There was brief discussion regarding sidewalks. Mr. Weisner said that the median home price in Buffalo Grove was $313,000, and these homes were slated to start above that. He did not know how this was going to be monitored or restricted. He was concerned about the density and school impact numbers being accurate. Chris Donaldson (89 Chestnut Terrace) asked about the three-story townhomes and asked about what safety concerns without fences on these properties. Julie Lavar (2038 Jordan Terrace) said that in a previous property, she had had problems with investor ownership in a multi-family home unit. She wanted to also ask about not only road traffic but construction traffic. To the Park District, she said she thought Didier Farms was going to grow. To the School District, she said she agreed that the school numbers needed to be examined more closely. Robbie Young (50 Carlyle) said that traffic had been mentioned Prairie and Buffalo Grove Road and asked if there was going to be a light. She said that to get down Brandywyn at school time is backed up already. She also said that three-story townhomes in the neighborhood would affect the value of neighboring homes. As a realtor, she gave her opinions. 04/5/2017 Erik Brennan (191 Hoffman Drive) said that these new homes with families would come in but there was less park space to play. He was concerned about the neighborhood park being used for a destination park. Kathy Arvanitakis (401 English Oak Terrace) said that people walk along the retention area with their dogs. She could see this area from her kitchen window and enjoyed the view. Looking at this area with taller grass and backed by three-story townhomes was disappointing. She said that this did not fit with the character of the neighborhood and wanted to know why the plan with 120 homes was not looked at more closely. Ronnie Sharma (2013 Olive Hill Drive) said that they had been used to low traffic flow and was concerned about a lot more traffic on Olive Hill and around the park. When she had brought up concerns with the Park District several years ago, she was told that when the Links Farms area this developed, resident input would be obtained. Regarding the kids in parks, she was okay with one pickleball court and the rest of the space be dedicated towards tennis courts or basketball courts. Regarding parking, this was becoming a destination park. The toddler park would have to be expanded if more kids were added to the area. She was also upset about a sidewalk planned to be going through the current soccer field. She reiterated concerns about additional children and additional traffic. Keith Donaldson (89 Chestnut Terrace) said that most millennials do not want to live in this type of area until they have children. As an avid biker, he said that small bike paths that do not go anywhere do not do anything for the bikers. Albert Modahue (197 Hoffman) said that it was 11pm, and he felt that this matter be tabled for the evening to get answers to the substantive questions. Kyle Olson (738 Aspen) said that he preferred not having private roads as this becomes a bigger problem for the residents. Jeff Braiman (26 Canterbury) said that this did not affect his home, and over the period of planning for this parcel, he knew this was an important property about how it would be developed. This had been planned as single family detached homes with larger lots. He said that private streets were rarely allowed because it was a maintenance problem, and it did cause confusion. There was some discussion regarding parking being allowed in the cul-de-sacs, and he also wanted to include sidewalks. He said his main point was that the proposal was too dense and was requesting too many variations on the smallest lots the Village grants. He reviewed the Comprehensive Plan for this area in the past, and he knew that there were slight changes. However, this was too dense. He also said that he had heard that there was a lack of senior housing options in Buffalo Grove, so he thought that there was a benefit to the Village residents and school districts. He also briefly mentioned open space. He reiterated to the audience to come to the Village Board as well. He liked this builder and knew this plan worked well for them, but it was important to be beneficial to the Village as well. Katie Mark (1920 Prairie Road) asked about how many accidents had occurred around Brandywyn and Buffalo Grove Road. She did not believe that 214 more households in 04/5/2017 this area would help with that situation. Easthaven was supposed to be developed for multi-generational homes, and she asked if more students were added to the school districts from the Easthaven development than expected. She said that her family sold property to create Easthaven, and at that time there were a lot of conversations about the park space. There were talks about the Comprehensive Plan and land was given for park space. She feels the park is not big enough given this new development, and she wants more park land. Bill Paradise (417 English Oak Terrace) said that he lived across from Buffalo Grove Road, and he did not want to look out at three-story townhomes. He said that this would alter the character of the neighborhood which was one of the conditions listed in the packet. He was concerned about the amount of kids and traffic because on his small cul- de-sac, he felt it averaged two cars per house, and at least one child per house when it was built. Chairman Smith said that there was a list of questions to be answered and recommended continuing this to the next meeting. Moved by Com. Goldspiel, seconded by Com. Khan, to continue the public hearing to April 19, 2017. RESULT: TABLED [UNANIMOUS] Next: 4/19/2017 7:30 PM MOVER: Stephen Goldspiel, Commissioner SECONDER: Zill Khan, Commissioner AYES: Smith, Moodhe, Cesario, Cohn, Goldspiel, Khan, Lesser, Weinstein ABSENT: Amy Au Regular Meeting Other Matters for Discussion None. Approval of Minutes 1. Planning and Zoning Commission - Regular Meeting - Mar 15, 2017 7:30 PM Moved by Com. Khan, seconded by Com. Cesario, to approved the meeting minutes from March 15, 2017. RESULT: ACCEPTED [5 TO 0] MOVER: Zill Khan, Commissioner SECONDER: Frank Cesario, Commissioner AYES: Smith, Cesario, Cohn, Goldspiel, Khan ABSTAIN: Adam Moodhe, Scott Lesser, Mitchell Weinstein ABSENT: Amy Au Chairman's Report None. 04/5/2017 Committee and Liaison Reports None. Staff Report/Future Agenda Schedule Next meeting would be April 19, 2017. Public Comments and Questions None. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 11:25 PM Chris Stilling Director of Community Development APPROVED BY ME THIS 5th DAY OF April , 2017