Loading...
1996-05-29 - Plan Commission - Minutes Board or Commission: ❑ Plan Commission Document Type: ❑Agenda 0 Minutes Meeting Date: 05/29/96 Type of Meeting: ❑ Special Meeting SPECIAL MEETING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION May 29, 1996 Proposed Walgreens store, rezoning to the B-5 District and approval of a Preliminary Plan for a retail store, northeast corner of Lake Cook Road/Buffalo Grove Road --Workshop #4 Chairman Goldspiel called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. in the Village Council Chambers, Buffalo Grove Municipal Building, 50 Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Commissioners present: Chairman Goldspiel Mr. Krug Ms. Howard Mr. Samuels Mr. Berman Mr. Lundine Mr. Trilling Mr. Ottenheimer Commissioner absent: Mr. Rosenston Also present: Mr. J.F. Carter, Dial Companies Mr. Ted Treesh, Metro Transportation Group Mr. Dennis Huffaker, W-T Engineering Mr. Jonathan Reese, Matthew Moran and Associates Ms. DeAnn Glover, Village Trustee Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Commissioner Lundine, seconded by Commissioner Trilling, to approve the regular meeting minutes of May 15, 1996. All Commissioners were in favor of the motion, and it passed unanimously, with Commissioners Howard and Ottenheimer abstaining. COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS Commissioner Lundine reported on the May 20, 1996 Village Board meeting, noting that the Board had a pre-application conference concerning a proposal to use the existing house and an adjoining vacant lot at the Relics of Olde subdivision for a school concerning education about PMS. Commissioner Lundine said that the Board raised a number of substantive issues concerning this use in a residential district, and the petitioner will have to address these questions prior to proceeding with an application for referral to the Plan Commission. He also noted that the President and Board re-appointed Commissioner Samuels to another term on the Plan Commission. Commissioner Krug stated that he will not participate in the discussion concerning the proposed Walgreens development to avoid a conflict of interest. PROPOSED WALGREENS STORE, REZONING TO THE B-5 TOWN CENTER DISTRICT AND APPROVAL OF A PRELIMINARY PLAN FOR A RETAIL STORE, NORTHEAST CORNER OF LAKE COOK ROAD/BUFFALO GROVE ROAD -- WORKSHOP 44 Mr. J.F. Carter of Dial Companies indicated that several changes have been made to the site plan for the proposed Walgreens store on Parcel A. These changes include modification of the driveway to Lake Cook Road to allow only right-in movements, the addition of an 8-foot sidewalk along Lake Cook Road, the addition of three street lights on Lake Cook Road and the addition of 8 parking spaces on the site. He noted that the access to Buffalo Grove Road is a full access driveway with 2 exit lanes (one for right turns and one for left turns) and one lane for entering vehicles. Commissioner Samuels inquired if any variations are being requested from Village ordinance standards. Mr. Pfeil said that the two proposed parcels do not meet the 10-acre minimum parcel size required in the B-5 District, and this is the only variation that has been identified. He noted that the minimum parcel size was varied for other developments such as Deerfield Bakery and the Grove Memorial Chapel. He indicated that no variations of the Development Ordinance have been requested. Chairman Goldspiel inquired if the added parking spaces in the northeast corner of the site were analyzed concerning conflicts between vehicles backing out of these spaces and vehicles circulating around this area of the building. Mr. Carter said that these spaces would be used for employee parking, so there would be very few movements in a typical day. Chairman Goldspiel noted that the right-in only access from Lake Cook Road makes the access to Town Center even more important to allow for circulation from the site. Commissioner Howard asked how the proposed driveway to Buffalo Grove Road would impact the existing driveway to the St. Mary's property on the west side of Buffalo Grove Road. Mr. Treesh said that the offset between the two driveways is in the "right" direction in terms on minimizing conflicts between vehicles using the respective driveways. He said that he is doing further study of the St. Mary's driveway and will provide information for the Village traffic consultant to review prior to the public hearing. Commissioner Howard noted that during the school year traffic in the morning peak period enters the St. Mary's property from the Buffalo Grove Road driveway and exits to Church Road. Mr. Treesh said that since Walgreens typically opens at 9:00 A.M. there would be little impact on the morning peak period traffic on Buffalo Grove Road. Chairman Goldspiel asked how left turns from the Walgreens site would affect traffic movements on Buffalo Grove Road, and what impact there would be on left turns from the St. Mary's driveway. Mr. Treesh said that traffic exiting Walgreens to go south on Buffalo Grove Road would need to find gaps to exit safely, but sight distances in the area are good, so these movements can be accommodated. Chairman Goldspiel asked how the right-in only access to Lake Cook Road affects exiting movements from the Walgreens site. Mr. Treesh said that the exiting movements previously allocated to Lake Cook Road in his traffic analysis will shift to the Buffalo Grove Road driveway. Approximately 10 additional exiting movements for southbound turns onto Buffalo Grove Road in peak periods will occur because of this re-allocation from Lake Cook Road. Mr. Pfeil noted that the Village Engineer has discussed the proposed full access driveway to Buffalo Grove Road with the Lake County Division of Transportation. It appears that Lake County will permit this driveway, but a full application needs to be submitted and approved. Mr. Treesh indicated that he has studied the free-standing Walgreens in Hanover Park, where approximately 70 to 75 parking spaces are available. His survey indicates that there are 30 vehicles in the parking lot at any one time. The drive-through facility has 2 vehicles stacked at a time. He noted that the turnover of vehicles in the parking lot is fairly constant. He indicated that the store has been open approximately 3 months. Chairman Goldspiel noted that the Hanover Park store is new, so the survey may not show trends for parking lot use that will develop over time as the store becomes more established. Commissioner Lundine inquired if the drive-through facility is a major component of the plan for the store. He asked if it would be open 24 hours per day. Mr. Treesh said that about 50 transactions per day occur at the drive-through, and it is considered to be a convenience for customers that would find it difficult to park their vehicles and enter the store. He indicated that the drive-through facility may not be open 24 hours per day, but this is a management decision by Walgreens based on the specific store. Chairman Goldspiel noted that the Village approved a drive-through facility for a pharmacy use at the Cambridge Commons shopping center, but it was never actually put into use. Mr. Huffaker reviewed the Preliminary Engineering Plan, noting that the site grading has been adjusted at the Village Engineer's direction to raise the building by 6 inches and to raise that parking lot by one inch. He explained that the stormwater requirement for proposed Parcels A and B is being provided by enlarging the existing facility at Town Center. Chairman Goldspiel asked how the detention facility is designed concerning overflow situations. Mr. Huffaker said this aspect to the Town Center facility is not being changed from the current design. He indicated that stormwater storage on the Walgreens parking lot is not part of the design. Mr. Carter stated that Dial Companies has discussed the use of the Town Center stormwater facility and cross easements for traffic access with Simon Development, owner of Town Center. These discussions will be "memorialized" at a meeting scheduled for June 4, 1996. Mr. Carter reviewed the four alternate site plans for Parcel B north of the proposed Walgreens store on Parcel A. He noted that the plans consist of a 5,000 square foot retail store; a 7,000 square foot retail building; a 3,500 square foot restaurant; and a parking lot of 62 spaces. He noted that all four of the plans include an access connection to Town Center, and all of the plans show the shared driveway to Buffalo Grove Road between Parcel A and Parcel B. Mr. Carter said that the 5,000 square foot building would be usable by businesses such as a video store or insurance office or other similar tenants. The 7,000 square foot building would be more oriented to multiple users such as a sandwich shop and a hair salon. Commissioner Samuels asked if the plans comply with B-5 zoning standards for setbacks. Mr. Pfeil said that he has not done a detailed analysis on the plans, but the B-5 District does not require a building setback adjoining property that is zoned commercial. He noted that the B-5 District does require a 25-foot setback from roads. Chairman Goldspiel inquired if the alternate plans have been discussed with Mr. Leikam, who will be the owner of Parcel B. Mr. Carter said the plans have not yet been discussed with Mr. Leikam, but Dial will ensure that easement rights for access on Parcel B are obtained from Mr. Leikam. Chairman Goldspiel asked if Mr. Leikam has agreed to the shared driveway to Buffalo Grove Road. Mr. Reese indicated that Mr. Leikam has agreed to this shared driveway. Chairman Goldspiel said that he is very concerned about the effectiveness of a Planned Unit Development ordinance as the tool to ensure that the site planning and access for Parcel B will actually be implemented as planned by the Village. Commissioner Berman suggested that the Plan Commission select one of the four alternate plans for Parcel B, and this plan should be an exhibit to the P.U.D. ordinance. The plan clearly shows the access that is contemplated for Parcel B in relation to adjoining properties. A future developer could request a revision to this plan, and the Village would have right of approval over any changes. Commissioner Ottenheimer said it would be helpful if the plan that provides the best access arrangement could be identified. Mr. Carter noted that it is difficult to make this determination. Commissioner Samuels inquired if Simon Development has a preference for one of the plans. Mr. Reese said that Simon would favor the plan that removes the fewest parking spaces from its property at Town Center. Commissioner Berman suggested that the plan depicting a parking lot use for Parcel B should be the plan recommended by the Plan Commission. Chairman Goldspiel asked if this might have some legal implications as a deprivation of landowner rights. Commissioner Berman commented that it would be arbitrary to pick one of the three plans showing a building. Commissioner Samuels noted that the parking lot plan emphasizes that access is required from Parcel B to Town Center, so it will be very clear to developers that this is a basic parameter for development of Parcel B. Commissioner Howard noted that the parking lot use might actually be a good choice for Parcel B if it is ultimately owned by St. Mary's. She noted that overflow parking is needed for activities at St. Mary's. The consensus of the Plan Commission was to use the parking lot plan for Parcel B as the plan of record for the public hearing and P.U.D. ordinance. Mr. Carter indicated that the documents necessary for the pubic hearing would be submitted. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT Chairman Goldspiel said that he had toured various stormwater detention facilities after the recent heavy rains, and had talked to U.S. Army Corps personnel at the Buffalo Creek reservoir. The Army Corps staff indicated that the recent storms were only 2 to 3 year storm events, despite the common idea that 100-year storm events occur frequently. Commissioner Krug said that the parking lot at Willow Stream park on Old Checker Road stores water in storm events, and it is clear to him that the project engineer misrepresented the stormwater management design when the plan was reviewed and approved by the Village. Chairman Goldspiel indicated that he would like to get comments from the Village Engineer concerning the stormwater facility on the north side of Deerfield Parkway across from the Wheatlands apartments. It appears that some erosion is occurring at this facility. Commissioner Trilling said he looked at the Boznos property along Milwaukee Avenue at Aptakisic Road, and it appeared fairly dry even after the recent storms. Commissioner Lundine noted that the Wal Mart in Wheeling has leased the northeast corner of its site along Lake Cook Road to McDonald's for a restaurant. FUTURE AGENDA SCHEDULE Mr. Pfeil noted that the public hearing concerning the Walgreens project is scheduled for next week, June 5, 1996. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS - None STAFF REPORT - None NEW BUSINESS - None ADJOURNMENT Moved by Commissioner Berman, seconded by Commissioner Krug, and carried unanimously to adjourn. Chairman Goldspiel adjourned the meeting at 8:35 P.M. Respectfully submitted, APPROVED BY: Robert E. Pfeil, Village Planner STEPHEN GOLDSPIEL, Chairman