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2012-08-01 - Plan Commission - Minutes Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: ❑A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/01/2012 Type of Meeting: PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 1, 2012 Crown Trophy 1340 Busch Parkway - Special use for accessory Retail sales 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. Stark Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Mr. Matthews Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Ms. Myer Also present: Ms. Charlene Berger, Crown Trophy Mr. Steve Berger, Crown Trophy Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. William Raysa, Village Attorney Mr. Greg Boysen, Director of Public Works/Village Engineer Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit 1: Drawings of interior space Exhibit 2: Memo from Robert Pfeil to the Plan Commission dated July 27, 2012 Exhibit 3: Floor Plan via email from Robert Pfeil to Plan Commissioners Ms. Charlene Berger noted they have been in business at 1200 Dundee Road for the last 15 years and it has done quite well and grown along with their product line. Therefore they need to get into a larger facility. They are not a normal retailer as they really do not have product on their shelves to sell. Everything is custom made in the shop. They do their own engraving and sandblasting as well as their own color sublimation and build all their trophies. The items they do show in the showroom are not retail. That is not to say that if someone comes in frantic for something at the last minute and they see something they want on the shelf they will, of course, be sold what they want. Most of their customers are businesses, corporations, park districts and government agencies. They do a lot of park and rec programs and youth organizations. Most of their business, about 90 percent, is through email and their catalogue. They take orders also over the phone and by fax. They do have quite a few customers who come in because they want to touch the product and see what it looks and feels like. Therefore they really do not need a retail unit and the place where they are at now they have a sandblaster that has an air compressor and they have tools that run with drills and wrenches and saws. It does get quite noisy. They do not have a place for trucks to come in so when semis do pull up they have a problem because they cannot get into the strip mall because there is no way out so they have to park on Dundee Road in the medium which means they are running between traffic trying to unload the truck. Ms. Berger stated the industrial district is really a place for them to be which is why they are asking for this special use permit. Ms. Berger reviewed the interior floor plans noting the sample area with a small counter for pick up. This area will probably be about 6 x 6 and the rest of the room is just samples and her office personnel will be out there with a reception area and a desk Ms. Berger reviewed the rest of the floor plan Ms. Berger stated that they will not be a detriment to the area. There are sign companies in the area and a few storage uses. They are light industry and do not have to worry about any kind of pollutants. She noted she has only 5 employees so will not be using a lot of parking and the lease agreement has 6 to 7 parking spaces for customers. She noted she usually only has about 1 customer an hour coming in to pick up product. Most of the time they are delivering items. Chairman Smith asked about the special use criteria to be reviewed. Ms. Berger stated this is a family business that will not be a detriment or danger to the area. She stated further they will not be taking up a lot of space nor causing a lot of traffic to come in. They will have semis only about once a month. She stated the business is not likely to get much bigger so will not be a problem for any other buildings there. As far as utilities and drainage and such everything is fine there and she does not need to do anything special. She stated they will be running ventilation out from their laser engravers and that is just for their employees' safety. The parking area is sufficient as they do not have many customers coming in and they usually deliver their orders. If they do come in they do still have their 7 parking spaces. Commissioner Cohn asked how the truck traffic will work when deliveries come in here. Ms. Berger stated there are two truck docks behind the strip area. Trucks will pull up there and they will go out with their dollies and bring in the product. Access for trucks is truly wonderful. They also have a back garage door where they can pull up to, unload the product and then park the van. Commissioner Weinstein asked once again about the dimensions for the sales area. Ms. Berger stated she has samples but the samples are not really for sale. She would like to use half of the 27 x 15 area to put samples in. They are not for sale and just there for people to see colors, figures, different models and then the metals are on the wall as are the plaques. The actual sales counter would be about 5 x 5 which is about 25 square feet. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present, Chairman Smith closed the public hearing at 8:50 p.m. Respectfully yours, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: ERIC SMITH, Chair Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: ❑A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/01/2012 Type of Meeting: PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 1, 2012 Bucky's Express, 1251 McHenry Road -Amendment of Village Zoning Ordinance to add automobile laundry as a special use in the B -3 District, amendment of a Planned Unit Development (PUD), Approval of a special use for an automobile laundry, approval of Building appearance package and approval of sign package Chairman Smith called the hearing to order at 8:55 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. Stark Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Mr. Matthews Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Ms. Myer Also present: Mr. Walter Hainsfurther, Kurtz Associates Mr. Glen Eriksson, Eriksson Engineering Associates Mr. Thomas Thunder, Acoustic Associates, Ltd. Mr. Joseph Altenhoff, ARC Design Resources Inc. Mr. Richard McMahon, Buchanan Energy Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. William Raysa, Village Attorney Mr. Greg Boysen, Director of Public Works/Village Engineer Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit 1: Powerpoint presentation Exhibit 2: Memo from Robert Pfeil to the Plan Commission dated July 27, 2012 Exhibit 3: Access drives on site Exhibit 4: Landscape Plan Exhibit 5: Layout Plan Exhibit 6: Grading Plan Exhibit 7: Sound Level Graph Exhibit 8: Floor Plan Group Exhibit 9: Building Elevations Group Exhibit 10: Interior photographs Exhibit 11: Primary Sign Exhibit 12: Canopy Signage Exhibit 13: Building Sign D-3 Exhibit 14: Annotated Version of Site Plan Mr. Walter Hainfurther of Kurtz Associates stated Buchanan Energy owns the location at the corner of Rt. 83 and McHenry Rd. Buchanan Energy is a privately owned company based in Omaha, Nebraska and has purchased 81 retail assets from Exxon Mobil. The major oil companies have all decided to get out of the retail business. He noted that each of their locations have to stand on their own from a profitability standpoint. They are talking about an investment of 2-3 million dollars on this location and it has to be one that commits to the owners requirements and standards while being respectful to the community. Mr. Hainsfurther stated relative to the text amendment request that there is a technical difference between a car wash and an automobile laundry. A car wash will allow a single car in a facility to go through a washing process. That is allowed by right. But an automobile laundry considered one that handles multiple automobiles at a single time. This particular use qualifies for that. Right now there would be no opportunity for anyone to have an automobile laundry in a B-3 District, only in a B-4 District. The Shell location is zoned similarly and does have a similar car wash where multiple vehicles can be in the wash at any given time. In that facility the conveyor actually protrudes from the building about 20 feet so a car basically starts the wash process outside the building and in this case it will all be contained within their building. Mr. Hainsfurther noted the second request is to allow them to have a special use for an automobile laundry. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the third request would be for a variation to allow for a reduction in the transition yard between a business district and a residential district from 50 feet to a minimum of 8.79 feet. Another variation being requested is to allow a reduction in landscaping along rights of way. As much as 25 feet is allowed but along McHenry Road you are allowed by code to reduce that to 12 feet and they are proposing 10 %2 feet on both sides. A variation to allow reduction in the required landscape islands within a parking lot is requested. A landscape of 180 square feet is required for every 20 parking spaces. While this development has 22 parking spaces they are not all in a row and they believe the landscaping is better served on the perimeter of the site. Mr. Hainsfurther further noted the variation request to allow a reduction in the required ground sign setback. Ten feet is the minimum required setback. Obviously if they only have a 10 foot setback at landscape it does not fit within that 10 feet so they are seeking to reduce that to 2 feet along McHenry Road. Mr. Hainsfurther also stated they seek a variation to allow two ground signs instead of one permitted. The two ground signs are the primary ID sign on McHenry Road and the car wash menu board which is located near the car wash entry. Mr. Hainsfurther noted a variation to allow an increase in the heights of a ground sign based on the setback. The ordinance allows a foot for every foot they are setback to a maximum of 15 feet. Because they are only set back 2 feet they would be looking at a two foot high sign which does not work in practical terms so they are looking for a 15 foot high sign. Mr. Hainsfurther stated they have a couple of variances related to the electronic message sign. One is to go from 60 square feet to 78.75 square feet. The code really allows for a larger sign when you do not have the electronic price sign component. He stated they are required by law to post signs and the standard in the area is to use an electronic price sign. Mr. Hainsfurther stated a variance is requested to allow the digits for gasoline prices on the electronic message portion of the ground sign to be 18 inches in height for the upper price and 13 inches for the bottom price instead of 12 inches as they feel that will be more visible and the Shell across the street has 18 inches. Mr. Hainsfurther stated that a variation is requested to allow multiple wall signs on a building frontage. One wall sign stating the name and nature of the occupancy is permitted on each frontage because they are on a corner. These results in them being allowed one sign on the west and south frontage of the buildings. They are looking for two signs on the south elevation which is the front of the building. One that is Bucky's and Rapid Wash combination and one that says B-fresh deli located on the east end. They are also looking for a variance to increase the amount of wall signage on the south elevation from 128 square feet permitted to 156.3 square feet. Mr. Hainsfurther noted there are two technical variations having to do with the engineering. One has to do with the under drain and the other is for the required clearance from the Village Flood Plain Regulations. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the current site showing a small store and six dispensing islands. To the west is a former office building that Exxon Mobil bought. The site is currently accessed by two access points on Rt. 83 and there are two access points for the office building off of Arlington Heights Road as well as another access point off of Courtland Drive into the site. Just to the north and east of the site is an access drive that goes to Spoerlein Commons Shopping Center. He stated there is an agreement between the parties to allow that to exist. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the station has probably not been touched since the late 70's and is in desperate need of upgrade or else it will become non-competitive. Mr. Hainsfurther noted the movements for the tanker trucks to see how they access the site. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the landscape plan noting they are condensing the two access points into one and it is a right in and right out only. It will have a pork chop in it. On Arlington Heights Road they are also going from two access points to a single access point. There are two access points that feed the office building today and they will take the office building down and go to one access drive. They have put a great deal of landscaping in the area that is closest to the residencies surrounding them and those are over 100 feet away. They also plan on putting an 8 foot high solid board on board fence up made out of recycled plastic material in brown. He stated they will make use of the detention basin they share with Spoerlein Commons in addition to making use of underground detention facilities in the front end of the project. They will have ample stacking to get to the car wash in the back. All lighting is down lighting and LED fixtures so there should be no spill over off the property line and they will comply with all lighting ordinances of the Village. Mr. Hainsfurther noted that during the workshop there was a great deal of discussion of the access drive off of Courtland Drive. He noted they believe it is a valuable drive to maintain. One of the things they have seen is that people come in and fill up and then they go to the Dunkin Donuts. This allows them the opportunity to get between this development and the Spoerlein Commons development. Mr. Glen Eriksson of Eriksson Engineering Associates stated they prepared a traffic impact study. When you look at a facility like this one should keep in mind that most of the traffic coming into it is already on the road. Fueling stations are not trip generators in and by themselves. Mr. Eriksson stated they conducted counts at all the various intersections in the area to determine the morning peaks and the afternoon peaks so they counted for 2 hours in the am and pm and basically found that the am peak is 7:15 am to 8:15 am and the pm peak is 4:45 to 5:45 pm. He stated it is a unique site from a control perspective. You have Lake County controlling Arlington Heights Road to south of the intersection with Rt. 83 which is an IDOT road and then Arlington Heights Road to the north is a Buffalo Grove Road as well as Courtland Drive being locally controlled. They found that the intersection of Rt. 83 and McHenry Road is a heavily travelled road to begin with but the amount of traffic generated by this site is minimal relative to what is going at that location. With the redevelopment of this property you are eliminating a couple of driveways and further restricting the movements in and out of this facility. Mr. Eriksson stated there are two driveways onto Old McHenry Road. They find that patrons who are users of this facility heading northwest are going to go into the very first driveway most of the time and their traffic numbers indicated that is what they are doing. Because Old McHenry Road has a barrier median the only way to get into the site coming from southeasterly on Old McHenry Road is to make a left turn and go into Arlington Heights Road. Currently those users would drive north up to Courtland and then drive into the site. In reality by developing the site the way it is and putting the driveway where it is we will be reducing that turning movement coming into the site because they can use that first driveway. Likewise people coming from the south who desire to utilize it coming up north from Arlington Heights Road will continue through this intersection as well and make a right turn in to the facility at that location. The new driveway provides the means of egress for the fueling trucks. They will be able to pull straight through and straight out. That way you can eliminate one of the driveways onto Old McHenry Road because of this change in geometry. Mr. Eriksson stated in summary they found that the incremental change is very minimal associated with this redevelopment and it has an insignificant effect upon the existing traffic volumes and actually an improvement for the people who are using Courtland because they won't be coming in as much. Mr. Hainsfurther stated that the engineering plans have been reviewed by the Village engineering staff and he believes they generally have no problems with the design aspects of the site. There are adequate utilities. There should be no drainage unto any adjoining property. Mr. Hainsfurther revised the grading plan which shows they are using their surface detention area and a bit of expansion in the southeast corner. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the location and types of merchandise contemplated for outdoor sales. They see this occurring in front of their building but not in front of the windows but in the solid parts primarily on the northwest corner for seasonal displays There might also potentially be smaller displays at the actually dispensing islands on the inside face. The only permanent sales feature is that they do offer propane tank refill. It is a State Fire Marshall requirement that those be left outside. There would be cage located against the building probably on the southeast corner of the building. Mr. Thomas Thunder of Acoustic Associates, Ltd. Stated when you are looking into noise impact what is very important is what is the current background sound that is there. They went to the site and measured the ambient noise that goes all the way from 3:00 pm through the midnight night time hours to 8:00 am. They computed what is called a 5 minute average. It is hovering around 56 decibels until about 11:00 pm at night when you begin to see it drop because traffic is less. It goes down to about as low as 45 decibels at 2-3:00 am and then it starts to rise. At about 5:00 pm is when it starts to exceed the daytime average of 56. It is at its highest during the morning rush hour. He noted that normal conversation is about 60 decibels. At morning traffic back to where the residences are that traffic is as loud as conversation. At 70 decibels the level is as loud as a vacuum cleaner in the home. Once the ambient noise levels were established they needed to know what kind of source they have. For this they went to a station in Bartlett that has a similar layout etc. and they made measurements 25 feet in front of an exit of the car wash. But they also made measurements at an angle because in acoustics the sound drops as you move off to the side. He stated their prediction is that at about 90 feet at a 90 degree angle which is where the closest locations are, it would be about 59 decibels based on their measurements in Bartlett. The sound coming out the entrance is lower than coming out the exit because the blowers are right there at the exit. If you move over to the entrance side of it the sound will be lower because the blowers are much further. They took a 2 decibel correction for that and the board fence gives them about a 4 decibel reduction. When you add all of these in you find the projected level back by the residences would be about 53 decibels which shows negligible impact until about 11 pm which is when the background noise starts to drop and now that car wash and the blowers would be audible and would pose an impact at that point continuing up to about 5 am. He stated the conclusion from this is there is negligible impact as it is designed now with landscaping and so forth except for the night time hours. Mr. Hainsfurther stated they will take care of the night time hours now. When this matter went through with Exxon Mobil there was a restriction on the hours of operation of the car wash and since the impact on the neighbors would occur primarily between 11:00 pm and 5:00 am they propose to close the car as it was required of Exxon Mobil and operate the car wash only between 6:00 am and 10:00pm. He believes that responds favorably to what the Commission was looking for in terms of making sure the impact on the neighbors is minimal. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the floor plan noting the car wash entrance would not be in the area closest to the residence which is the east side of the facility with the exit on the west side. The convenience store will sell the usual items and have a deli section and a cooler a quite a bit of space for grab and go type of items. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the south elevation of the facility and noted the tower element which is brick in a sable color. They have a fiber cement panel of varying colors presented to the Commission previously. The eyebrow feature is metal that will be clear anodized aluminum or a similar material that will look that way and it runs all the way around the south end and returns on the east end of the project. He stated they will fully screen the rooftop equipment with a prefabricated metal screen which they will paint to match a color to coordinate with the rest of the building. They have the three signs on this face which is one of the variations they are looking for. The Bucky's sign itself is a sign that is from tip to tip 17. 3 feet long and 7.6 feet deep. That does not include the Rapid Wash sign. The Rapid Wash is about 14 feet long and 20 inches tall. It is the only thing on the building that identifies them as having a car wash and they think that is very important to their marketing effort. Then they are branding their deli as B-fresh. That sign is 10.8 feet by 3 feet including the term "lunch" underneath it. This is a four sides building so all of the sides will be finished. All of the rooftop equipment will be screened and will have no impact on the neighbors. The north facing side is a cast stone product in a ginger color. They have some glass block on the back side to get some natural light into that space. Again there are some fiber cement panels and the brick as a base underneath. They have now run the brick all the way across as the ART staff requested. The eastern elevation has an entrance sign as a directional sign above the car wash. They took off the Bucky's sign that was on that east side. The west elevation has a smaller Bucky's on the tower and the exit sign. He stated one of the questions asked by the Commission was about outdoor seating and he notes that is not part of this application. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the interior photographs showing how bright and natural everything looks. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the primary sign which is subject to a couple of variations. One of them is for the height of the letters. The upper three numbers are 18 inches and the lower set of numbers is smaller which is the gas price without a wash. Those are 13 inches and they want it to be seen. If they are not seen it can cause a traffic issue. They are also looking for a variance on the height of the sign. The code allows one foot for every foot you are set back to a maximum of 15 feet. Here they are only set back 2 feet but they would like a 15 foot sign. They are also looking for a variance on the overall size of this sign. A typical ground sign without that electronic price sign could be 80 feet. Because of the electronic price sign it has to go down to 60 square feet and they would like to have 80 square feet. The car wash menu board goes along the east property line and is strictly there as a sales tool for the car wash. Commissioner Johnson stated this is a vast improvement to the site but she still feel that too much is being put in on too small of a space. She also noted that Village code can be varied but there are an awful lot of variations being requested. Her biggest concern is going from a 50 foot to a 9 foot setback is extreme which is in the rear of the property closest to the residential neighbors. She stated no homeowner expected to have a business that close to their property line. She further stated her belief that the current laundry exit conflicts with the Courtland Drive entrance and exit and she does not see why two entrances and exits are needed. If you get the access on Arlington Heights Road it is sufficient and the Courtland Drive access is not necessary. Further she asked if there is any way to pivot the building south on its northeast point making it parallel to the north property line rather than parallel to McHenry Road as it seems that way they could increase the north setback to 41 feet. In addition the McHenry Road setback of 10 %2 feet and placing a sign within 2 feet of a property line is just trying to put too much on one piece of property. Commissioner Johnson asked about the Village flood plan regulation and if it would be possible to make the high water level %2 foot lower to be in compliance with Village Code. Mr. Joseph Altenhoff of ARC Design stated they are providing a combination of surface stormwater storage in the two basins on site currently. In combination with the surface they are providing underground storage to meet the total volume requirement as outlined in the ordinance. They are limited by how much water they can put in those facilities by the grade on Arlington Heights Road. It is low along Arlington Heights Road and so the difference between the exit points, the lowest point in the drainage system, and Arlington Heights Road limits them to what the high water can be. Since there has been no history of flooding at all and the ordinance specifically was written so that there would be a setback from adjoining properties on a large surface basis, the high water levels in both existing basins are going to be lower than they are currently so it is not any negative impact on this site, the public street system or the neighbors. Commissioner Johnson asked if it is his opinion that even though there is a variance of over %2 with Village code there is ample storage space for water and we will not be flooding public streets. Mr. Altenhoff stated if you could see the amount of underground piping you would see clearly that all of the shaded area there is stormwater detention and all of the pipes throughout the site that actually convey stormwater from one point to another are also oversized pipes to provide the necessary volume. Mr. Hainsfurther also noted the Village engineering department has reviewed these plans and have expressed no concerns. Mr. Hainsfurther also stated there is just no way to pivot this building and line it up with the back property line because then you do not have adequate clearances for cars to go in and to have head in parking which is a standard in this type of field. He pointed out that this development pre-existed the development around it. He also reviewed the closest residence showing how far it actually is and noted that realistically there is no impact on residences. Even from the residence closest on the northeast corner there is quite a bit of distance plus you have the access point for Spoerlein Commons. He stated he understands that technically there are variations but in fact if the point is to provide a transition between a residence and a commercial use, the site plan here allows for that to happen with the buffering. He further stated that Commissioner Johnson's mention of the setback variation on McHenry Road is a landscape setback, not a building setback. Even if they were 15 feet back with an 8 foot sign they are still going to need a variance for the setback on the sign. Commissioner Johnson asked what kind of traffic issues there might be if 18 inch tall price digits were not used. Mr. Hainsfurther stated people will slow down if it is not legible to see what the price is which is the potential for an accident to occur. In this case it is also an issue of equity. They are in a competitive business and they cannot go on with one hand tied behind their back because someone across the street has something they do not. Commissioner Johnson asked if the Village does routinely approve 18 inch numerals. Mr. Pfeil stated he would have to consult with Mr. Sheehan, Deputy Building Commissioner, to document the complete history of variations for gasoline price signs, but he believes the Shell at Lake Cook and Buffalo Grove Road uses 12-inch digits, so he is not sure that "routinely" is an accurate representation. Commissioner Johnson noted a sign appears to be at the exit of the car wash area. Mr. Hainsfurther stated there would be no sign as they only took a photograph of another site and superimposed the sign on it. Commissioner Johnson asked if there would be a car care center. Mr. Hainsfurther stated no there would be no car care center. Commissioner Johnson noted the proposed fence on the north side of the property looks like it transects the detention area where Bucky's would own half of the property and the townhouses own the other half. Mr. Altenhoff stated water will get through the bottom part of that fence without any problem. He noted they will actually hold the top elevation of the fence constant and the bottom core of the fence will be contoured to the actual ground. Chairman Smith asked what the benefit to keeping the Courtland Drive access is. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the question is if there is a conflict with the exit from the car wash. He pointed out the car comes out at a very slow rate of speed and a car can take as long as it needs without causing any kind of traffic hazard coming out. Last time there was a lot of debate but not much clarity from the Commission as to whether or not that driveway should remain. They have shown it to remain because they think it has some value. People do come out of here and go to Spoerlein Commons and that is really the only way to do that without going out taking a right and another right to get back in. It benefits the shopping center as much as it benefits Bucky's. They do not anticipate a great deal of traffic there. He stated they would like to have it but if the Commission desires to have it closed that is something they would be willing to discuss. Commissioner Johnson countered that by saying she does not feel it is such an inconvenience to go out onto northbound Arlington Heights Road and go around and she is picturing some teenage driver whipping down Courtland Drive and someone coming out and an accident occurring and she feels it is too close to the car wash exit Mr. Hainsfurther noted that Courtland Drive is really there only to serve the neighborhood that is around it and not heavily used. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the traffic study probably tells how many cars turn off of Courtland making a left hand turn into the development today. Mr. Eriksson stated during peak times they only saw 2 in a peak morning hour and zero in the afternoon peak. Commissioner Cohn stated he likes the Courtland Drive exit and feels it is a convenience rather than a nuisance. He asked Dr. Thunder if has looked at the noise levels and impacts from the car wash compared to the Illinois Noise regulations and determined if it is in compliance. Dr. Thunder stated it would be in compliance because they are projecting about 53 decibels and the State of Illinois roughly has a limit of 55 decibels for sound radiated from commercial property to residential property and that is during day time hours and it is on an average basis. The State does allow an averaging which they have not done here. The 53 decibels is not going to be on all the time as it is only on when the blowers are on. So if the blowers are on about 70-80 percent of the time then the average level would actually be lower than what he has shown here. Commissioner Cohn noted that if he was standing next to the residential building closest to the new car wash he asked if he would hear the car wash since it would be no louder than the existing background noise. Dr. Thunder stated it is not that he may not hear it at all as there could be a time when the blowers happen to be on and there happens to be 5 second lull in the traffic. Commissioner Cohn asked what the residents will see. Will they see a whole side of the building or the fence or the fence with the tree tops? Mr. Altenhoff noted over the years there has been a good stand of trees that have developed between Courtland Drive and the Bucky's property line. That vegetation will no be touched. There is also a good amount of vegetation on the other side of the access drive from Courtland to Spoerlein Commons which will also not be touched. In the new condition they will see a fence with the landscaping beyond it Commissioner Stark stated he agrees keeping Courtland Drive open is probably a good thing for Spoerlein Commons. He asked if a taller fence or fence of a different material dampen noise even more. Dr. Thunder stated yes a taller fence would. However, it is a set of diminishing returns. Commissioner Stark asked how they came up with the 8 foot fence. Dr. Thunder noted 8 feet is what the ordinance calls for. Generally if you can totally block the line of sight you can expect about 5-6 decibel reduction. Here it will not totally block the line of sight which is why he only gave it a 4 decibel reduction instead of the full amount. Mr. Hainsfurther noted the blowers are pointing out to the commercial are and away from the residences. Commissioner Stark asked if the pavement for the handicapped spaces will be at the same level as the sidewalk. Mr. Hainsfurther stated yes. Commissioner Weinstein asked how many handicapped spaces are required. Mr. Hainsfurther only one is required as long as you are under 25 spaces. Commissioner Weinstein asked what B-fresh is and why a sign is necessary. Mr. Hainsfurther stated it is like Subway and it is a new concept for Bucky's and it is their brand. They are investing money in a program that they feel will have some brand equity and they want people to know it is offered. Commissioner Weinstein stated he wants to make absolutely sure of the color of the bricks on the side. Mr. Hainsfurther stated they have testified that it is sable brown. It will not be gray or white brick. Commissioner Weinstein asked how tall the Shell sign is. Mr. Hainsfurther stated he is not sure but does not think it is 15 feet high but does believe it is a lot wider and narrower than they have here. Commissioner Weinstein wants to clear the record and noted that somewhere back the distance to the nearest residence was said to be 100 feet and yet the diagram notes it as 91 feet. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the distance is 91 feet as noted on the diagram. Commissioner Matthews asked if the 15 foot sign is by the entrance off of Old McHenry Road. It will then be facing looking down Arlington Heights Road. Mr. Hainsfurther said the sign faces toward Arlington Heights Road and Route 83; it is intended to be viewed by motorists traveling on Route 83 from the southeast. Commissioner Matthews asked what the height of the fence will be in the middle of the detention. Mr. Altenhoff noted it would be another 3 or 4 feet. Mr. Hainsfurther noted it is a 12 foot fence at that point but it is down in a valley and you will not really perceive that. Commissioner Matthews asked since it is a 12 foot fence would a variance be necessary. Mr. Pfeil stated he will have to check with Mr. Sheehan, Deputy Building Commissioner, but it is probable that a variation would be needed for a fence higher than 8 feet. Commissioner Stark noted the discussion has been saying Old McHenry Road but this is really McHenry Road. Commissioner Goldspiel agrees with Commissioner Johnson about the variances and is very concerned about the landscape setback along Route 83 because the Village is trying to achieve a unified appearance for frontage along the highways and streets throughout the town, and having a reduced landscaped yard as proposed on this plan is not appropriate. Commissioner Goldspiel noted automobile manufacturers are coming out with all electric and hybrid cars and at some point that will affect how much gasoline and diesel fuel is used by cars. He asked if this will have a facility for recharging electric cars. Mr. Hainsfurther stated he know of no plans for having charging stations. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if there is a difference in the noise attenuation between a berm and a fence. Dr. Thunder stated that the height of the barrier is the primary element in attenuating sound. Commissioner Goldspiel noted that he has observed that the low berms along Lake Cook Road in the park area adjacent to Weidner Road seem to really help screen out the noise from motor vehicles. Dr. Thunder stated that is due to two reasons. First, tire noise is low to the ground so even a 3 foot high berm is effectively high and completely blocks the line of sight of the tires. Secondly, tire noise generates a lot of high frequency sound which is more irritating to the ear and it does nothing to block out the engine sound. That is why on an expressway even when they have a 22 foot high barrier you can still hear the engines from the trucks because those are low frequencies that spill over the top. So berms and fences are more effective at blocking out high frequency sounds than they are low frequency sounds. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if it would be desirable to have a low berm along Route 83 on the landscaped setback to cut down some of the high pitched noise. Mr. Hainsfurther noted it may do something about noise but you are only blocking the noise from our own site and then there are sight concerns. Cars are pulling in and out of there and you have to hold it back or you will create an accident. You are not helping the residents by hiding that noise since the fence will do some of that but also since the residents are off to the side you are only effectively protecting the site itself. Commissioner Goldspiel noted that it is a very low berm. Mr. Hainsfurther noted he understood but even a low berm is not desired by most Village engineers. They want a distance between a driveway and the nearest obstruction even if it is just a couple of feet high. Commissioner Goldspiel noted that if we could have the 25 feet distance we could still have a berm there. Mr. Hainsfurther stated that is not serving any purpose other than blocking the noise off of their own property and they do not care about the noise from the street and you are not helping the neighbors. Commissioner Goldspiel asked why it does not affect the neighbors because if it goes past this property it goes to them. Mr. Hainsfurther stated no. The residences are not directly behind their property. They are being blocked by buildings or other structures and you have to go whatever the distance of this property is plus the width of the right of way plus the width of whatever their setback is all of which is several hundred feet off the road. Commissioner Goldspiel asked exactly where this fence will be. He was shown the entire route of the fence. Mr. Hainsfurther noted it is from the east side of the entrance that exists on Courtland Drive all the way across the north property line headed east to the corner, then turning south and going down to the end of the building. Commissioner Goldspiel noted he would like a direct comment from the Village staff regarding the detention. Mr. Boysen stated they have reviewed the drainage plan and have no objection to it. It is an existing site that was pre-developed and there is some additional detention being provided and appears to be the appropriate amount. Commissioner Goldspiel noted that comparisons to the Shell station across the street are continuously being made. He noted that the Shell station is much more extensively landscaped and has a lot more green space than this would have. Secondly, that station and its sign package were approved long before the current sign ordinance. Mr. Hainsfurther stated he was not sure because he asked that question of the staff and did not get an answer. However, they have changed signs since that station was built. They put additional signs for circle K up and they have changed from a manual price sign to an electronic price sign so he is assuming that through all that how were they approved and he was under the impression from Brian Sheehan that there was a variance issue to allow those signs to be put up and that is what he is basing his thought processes on. Chairman Smith asked what the Shell car wash hours are. Mr. Pfeil stated he did not get that information but did supply the hours of the previously approved PUD for this site. Chairman Smith stated he would really like to know but thinks it is probably the same and would like to see the same time frame here. Chairman Smith asked if there would any vacuum. Mr. Hainsfurther stated no. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if the car wash would be automated with no attendants. Mr. Hainsfurther stated there would be no one out there but the store is attended to 24/7 and there is video surveillance going into the store. Commissioner Goldspiel asked for comment on any possible conflict between the car wash exit and Courtland Drive. Mr. Altenhoff stated there is enough space there for about one vehicle out but the cars have already gone through the drying cycle so it is really more of a visibility perspective and the two of them are actually looking towards each other so it will be the person coming out of the car wash who will be moving slower and will probably be engaging the car and putting it back into drive. There is enough of visibility there and is not a blind corner. It is actually better than 90 degrees. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if there is enough room for someone coming out of the car wash to stop if someone is coming in without being rear ended. Mr. Hainsfurther noted that if someone sits on there is a detection loop in the pavement that will stop the conveyor. Mr. Raysa inquired if the proposed fence will be white. Mr. Hainsfurther stated that the fence will be brown, not white as labeled on the site plan. Trustee Sussman asked if the B-fresh would be selling fresh donuts and sandwiches. Mr. Hainsfurther stated no donuts and everything is brought in and would include bakery goods. Trustee Sussman asked if either Subway or Dunkin Donuts would have a problem with that. Mr. Pfeil noted that this is a separate property, so there aren't any lease restrictions concerning the sale of products that are also offered in the adjacent shopping center. Trustee Sussman asked why the noise study did not include anything between 9:00 am and 2:00 pm. Dr. Thunder stated during the day time hours the sound levels will drop after the morning rush hour and it will match up to about the same level in the early afternoon hours. They showed the most pertinent time frame. Trustee Sussman asked if there is any reason for a spike on the chart at 4:00 am. Dr. Thunder stated he cannot be sure but it seems that something like a truck pulled up close to the microphone and just idled there. Mr. Jack Lagershausen, 1255 Ranchview Ct, in Spoerlein Farms subdivision stated that he is a member of the Board of the Directors of the homeowners association. He noted that the president of the association provided a letter to the Village in opposition to the proposed plan. They have had discussions about this project. The subdivision has 176 homeowners with an average of two cars, so there are well over 350 automobiles and everyone comes and goes to and from work. He noted he personally always uses Courtland in order to go east on McHenry Road in the rush hours. Courtland is backed up as cars are waiting to go south on Arlington Heights Road at the light or go to the bank so there is a big back up during rush hour. He asked if the street would remain the same or would be changed in some way. Mr. Lagershausen stated the residents have several concerns and one of them is noise which has been addressed and the hours of operation for the car wash seem very reasonable. One of the things they are concerned about is impact on home values. He asked if anyone has any figures on the sales of homes around the Shell/McDonald's facility across the intersection from this site. Another issue is the question of problems with thefts or vandalism or teenage problems since this store will be open 24 hours each day. He asked for clarification on Section 17.44.040.D.3 to allow a transition yard of 8.79 feet instead of 50 feet adjoining a residential property. He asked if they are losing space. Mr. Lagershausen summarized the concerns of the Spoerlein residents: traffic congestion, access in and out of their community, noise, over commercialization. The residents hope the Plan Commission will take these concerns into consideration. Mr. Hainsfurther stated the impact on home values is a difficult thing to address because they don't have any data. He would like to think that because this is an improvement over what is there that it will certainly not diminish home values and it will hopefully contribute to a more viable neighborhood. It is a commercial use and it was always a commercial use and it has always been a 24 hour use. In terms of problems with police activity he does not know what goes on at the Shell but in his experience for the last 30 years and in speaking to police departments they like that they are open 24 hours and serve as another pair of active eyes in that area. When something is amiss or see someone who does not belong they are able to call the police and get someone out there. Most police departments have told them they have no problem with a 24 hour operation like this. He would be surprised if there was any increased impact on the neighbors in a negative way with any kind of crime or vandalism. Mr. Hainsfurther stated that in terms of congestion in the neighborhood he believes that their traffic report clearly says they would not be increasing any additional traffic into the neighborhood. That is just not the nature of this type of use. Mr. Hainsfurther reviewed the setback and said the easiest way to explain it is that from a technical standpoint the answer is yes. However, at the northeast corner you are actually over 40 feet away from the property line. So technically you will lose some open space in terms of the 50 foot required setback but in terms of actual impact onto the neighborhood you are really not losing that much because the neighbors who are the closest is off of the northeast corner and that is where the Bucky's building is technically farthest away from the setback. Mr. Martin Sussman, Vice Chairman of the Village Commission for Residents with Disabilities, asked if there is a possibility for help for disabled customers in fueling their vehicles, since persons in wheelchairs have difficulty getting out of their vehicles, particularly in bad weather conditions. Mr. Richard McMahon of Buchanan Energy stated that the company trains their employees to assist customers who need help using the gas pumps. The customer can use the intercom unit at the pump to call into the store and have someone come out and help them. Commissioner Goldspiel asked if the pumps have two way communications from the pump to the store. Mr. Hainsfurther stated yes. Commissioner Cohn responded to Trustee Sussman stating he has looked at the noise report and he deals with these kinds of things professionally and he understands it. He noted that what Dr. Thunder has done is capture a data set that is representative of a period of time that will allow him to evaluate the impact on the residents and the fact that there is a period of time where he did not have the microphone out there but he had it out for 16 hours covering a period of time of rush hour, non-rush hour and evening satisfies him that Dr. Thunder has really evaluated the highest and lowest impact of time so that he could evaluate the impact to the residents. Commissioner Cohn asked since there is really nothing all that new and significant about this re-development from many others across the country why is it taking 15 variations. Is there something more onerous about our codes and ordinances than other places? Mr. Hainsfurther stated every community is different and each one deals with things differently. He noted he appreciates the process here and combining the review process here is very helpful. He stated Buffalo Grove is really not any more onerous. Mr. Hainsfurther went through the special use criteria stating: 1. This meets the first criteria relative to serving the public convenience at the location of the subject property and it will not be detrimental or endanger the public welfare. This meets the code requirements because it is an existing use that they are just rebuilding. 2. The location and size of the special use and the nature and intensity of the operation being conducted with the special use and the size of the property and the location with the streets and giving access shall be in harmony with the orderly development of the district in which it is located. He stated this is a fully developed district and a commercial corner and the reduction in the access points is actually a benefit for the community. 3. The special use is not injurious to the use and enjoyment of other property or will substantially diminish and impair other property values within the neighborhood. He stated he has not heard any testimony that it will do any of those things. 4. The nature and location and size of the buildings and the structures involved will not impede nor substantially hinder or discourage the development and use of adjacent land and buildings. This is a fully developed district and he does not see that changing 5. That there are adequate utilities and roads have been proven 6. The parking areas are adequate for this particular special use and are properly located and screened from adjoining residential uses and the entrance and exit driveways to and from these parking areas will be designed as to prevent traffic hazards. He noted that by the placement of the buildings and the pump islands that there will actually be less light from this station going into the neighborhood than currently exists today. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present, Chairman Smith closed the public hearing at 10:10 pm. Respectfully submitted, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: ERIC SMITH, Chair Board or Commission: ❑ Plan commission Document Type: 0 A e g nda 0 Minutes Meeting ate: 08/01/2012 Type of Meeting: ❑ Regular Meeting REGULAR MEETING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION August 1, 2012 Crown Trophy, 1340 Busch Parkway -Special use for accessory retail Sales in the Industrial District Bucky's Express, 1251 McHenry Road -Amendment of Village Zoning Ordinance to add automobile laundry as a special use in the B -3 District and Amendment of a Planned Unit Development (PUD), approval of a special Use for an automobile laundry, approval of building appearance package and Approval of sign package 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. Stark Mr. Cohn Mr. Weinstein Ms. Johnson Mr. Goldspiel Mr. Matthews Commissioners absent: Mr. Khan Ms. Myer Also present: Ms. Charlene Berger, Crown Trophy Mr. Steve Berger, Crown Trophy Mr. Walter Hainsfurther, Kurtz Associates Mr. Glen Eriksson, Eriksson Engineering Associates Mr. Thomas Thunder, Acoustic Associates, Ltd. Mr. Joseph Altenhoff, ARC Design Resources, Inc. Mr. Richard McMahon, Buchanan Energy Ms. Beverly Sussman, Village Trustee Mr. Andy Stein, Village Trustee Mr. William Raysa, Village Trustee Mr. Greg Boysen, Direct of Public Works/Village Engineer Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Cohn to approve the minutes of the special meeting of July 11, 2012. Commissioner Goldspiel noted page 4, paragraph 8 required a change of the word appreciate to appreciation. All Commissioners were in favor of the amended motion and the motion passed unanimously with Commissioner Johnson abstaining. Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Cohn to approve the minutes of the public hearing of July 18, 2012. Commissioner Goldspiel noted a correction necessary on page 5, paragraph 2 from the word site to sight. All Commissioners were in favor of the amended motion and the motion passed unanimously with Commissioners Johnson and Cohn abstaining. COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS - None CROWN TROPHY, 1340 BUSCH PARKWAY - SPECIAL USE FOR ACCESSORY RETAIL SALES IN THE INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Johnson to recommend approval to the Village Board of the petition for approval of a special use for an accessory retail sales area in the Industrial District pursuant to Section 17.48.020.C.14 of the Village Zoning Ordinance for the property located at 1340 Busch Parkway. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES:Stark, Cohn, Weinstein, Johnson, Goldspiel, Matthews, Smith NAYS:None ABSENT: Khan, Myer ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 7 to 0. The regular meeting was suspended at 8:55 p.m. The regular meeting was reconvened at 10:10 pm. BUCKY'S EXPRESS, 1251 MCHENRY ROAD - AMENDMENT OF VILLAGE ZONING ORDINANCE TO ADD AUTOMOBILE LAUNDRY AS A SPECIAL USE IN THE B-3 DISTRICT AND AMENDMENT OF A PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT (PUD), APPROVAL OF A SPECIAL USE FOR AN AUTOMOBILE LAUNDRY, APPROVAL OF BUILDING APPEARANCE PACKAGE AND APPROVAL OF SIGN PACKAGE Moved by Commissioner Weinstein, seconded by Commissioner Stark to recommend approval to the Village Board of the petitioner's property at 1251 McHenry Road for amendment of the Village Zoning Ordinance (Title 17 of the Buffalo Grove Municipal Code) to add automobile laundry as a special use in the B-3 District, and approval of an amendment of a planned unit development (PUD) in the B-3 District and a special use for an automobile laundry, with the following variations: Zoning Ordinance: Section 17.44.040.D.3 to allow a transition yard of 8.79 feet instead of 50 feet adjoining a residential property; Section 17.44.040.D4 to allow landscaped setbacks of 10.5 feet along McHenry Road and Arlington Heights Road; Development Ordinance: Section 16.50.030.E.1.c. to allow high density polyethylene storm sewer pipe in those locations where the piping is acting as an underground detention storage reservoir; Section 16.50.040.C.3.b.3 to eliminate the under drain in the two existing reconfigured detention basins; Section 16.50.040.D concerning the setback and elevation of structures and parking lots from the high water level of a stormwater detention facility, Section 16.50.150.B.4 to waive the requirement for a landscaped island in the parking lot; Sign Code: Section 14.16.030, Section 14.16.060 and Section 14.16.070 pertaining to ground signs and wall signs and Section 14.20.070 concerning electronic message signs and an addition amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to allow a fence up to a height of 12 feet at the location where the detention drops but has a level height at the top of the fence, subject to : 1. That the automobile laundry hours of operation be limited to no earlier than 6:00 am and closed no later than 10: pm and will match the hours of the car wash located at the Shell station across the street. Commissioner Matthews stated he does not feel it is important to match the car wash hours to the Shell as long as we have the time at which the noise issue comes and goes between 6 am and 10 pm. Commissioner Weinstein stated he would like to hear from the other Commissioners although he would not object to dropping that condition. Commissioner Cohn stated that condition should be dropped as it is not part of the record and it is not part of the technical reason we picked the hour range that we have and is more of a policy issue about fairness between businesses. Moved by Commissioner Cohn, seconded by Commissioner Stark to drop the language dealing with the match of hours for Shell. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Stark, Cohn, Weinstein, Johnson, Goldspiel, Matthews, Smith NAYS: None ABSENT: Khan, Myer ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 7 to 0. Commissioner Cohn noted what concerns him the most is the number of variances which he understands and appreciates why they are necessary and he accepts it. Quality of life issues for nearby residents concern him and will this have an impact. Noise has been addressed; traffic and accessibility issues have been addressed. As far as property value he does not think there has been anything to suggest that the improvement of this gas station will result in a decline in adjacent property values and he personally believes it will help or be neutral. Security issues have been addressed. He is concerned with the aesthetics of the site in relation to the adjacent residential area, but the proposed fencing and landscaping will provide screening for the residents. He feels the gas station is such an improvement that he will vote for this. Commissioner Weinstein stated he still has some concerns with the excessive signage and the landscaped yards being so small but will overlook those issues as this is a great improvement. Commissioner Johnson noted her main concerns are the variations for the setback from the adjacent residential property and the reduced landscaped yards along the street. She feels Village codes are in place to protect the residents so when they buy a home something does not become closer and as Commissioner Goldspiel noted about continuity and landscape along our roads and beauty in our town. She wants to support improvement to this corner, but has concerns with the proposed plan. Commissioner Goldspiel said he speaks in opposition to the motion for the reasons of the setbacks and he does not think this is a minimal change for the people who live behind it. Chairman Smith called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Stark, Cohn, Weinstein, Matthews, Smith NAYS: Johnson, Goldspiel ABSENT: Khan, Myer ABSTAIN: None The motion passed 5 to 2. FUTURE AGENDA SCHEDULE Mr. Pfeil said the next meeting will be on August 15, 2012. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS - None STAFF REPORT- None NEW BUSINESS - None ADJOURNMENT Moved by Commissioner Stark, seconded by Commissioner Weinstein and carried unanimously to adjourn. Chairman Smith adjourned the meeting at 10:24 pm. Respectfully submitted, Fay Rubin, Recording Secretary APPROVED BY: ERIC SMITH, Chair