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1998-02-04 - Plan Commission - Minutes REGULAR MEETING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION February 4, 1998 The Community Chapel of Buffalo Grove,the Covington Office Plaza southwest corner of Dundee Road/Golfview Terrace-Amendment of a Planned Unit Development(P.U.D.) and Preliminary Plan in the B-3 District for a funeral home facility Chairman Goldspiel called the meeting to order at 12:05 a.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. Trilling Mr. Moons Mr. Viehman Commissioners absent: Commissioner Ottenheimer(recused prior to public hearing concerning the Community Chapel) Also present: Mr. Lawrence Freedman,Ash,Anos, Freedman&Logan Mr. Gerald Lindgren, Kenig,Lindgren, O'Hara,Aboona, Inc. Ms. Frances Fazio,Manhard Consulting, Ltd. Mr. Gary Hay, The Hay Company,Inc. Mr. James R. Murray, The Loewen Group Mr. Elroy Sandquist III,Attorney at Law Mr. Joseph E. Zgonina, Marchris Engineering,Ltd. Mr. Darrell Wright,J. Benes&Associates Mr. William Raysa,Village Attorney Mr. Richard Kuenider,Village Engineer Mr. Charles Hendricks,Village Trustee Ms. DeAnn Glover,Village Trustee Mr. Robert Pfeil, Village Planner Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Regular Meeting-February 4, 1998-Page 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Commissioner Samuels,seconded by Commissioner Moons to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of January 7, 1998. All Commissioners were in favor of the motion and the motion passed unanimously with Commissioner Krug abstaining. COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS L./ Commissioner Krug reported on the Village Board meeting of February 2, 1998 and stated the Comprehensive Plan was approved with one change regarding the widening of Lake Cook Road from Milwaukee Avenue to Route 83. The Trustees chose to support widening of Lake Cook Road only up to Hastings Drive. In addition, there was a pre-application conference for the property at the southeast corner of Buffalo Grove Road and Aptakisic Road for development of a Walgreens, fast food restaurant and retail store with curb cuts on both Aptakisic Road and Buffalo Grove Road. The developer agreed to eliminate the fast food restaurant. The Board directed the petitioner to revise the plan and return to the Board for referral to the Plan Commission. Chairman Goldspiel stated he attended the Village Board meeting on January 26, 1998 which was a workshop to discuss the Eagle food store plan proposed for Town Center. The Board reviewed items including the trash compacter and refuse area truck loading area. The Board directed the developer to add more wall screening around the refuse and loading area and to cover the area with the canopy or roof. Hours of operation were discussed. The Board directed the developer to prepare a revised plan prior to the agenda when an ordinance would be considered. THE COMMUNITY CHAPEL OF BUFFALO GROVE.THE COVINGTON OFFICE PLAZA, SOUTHWEST CORNER OF DUNDEE ROAD/GOLFVIEW TERRACE-AMENDMENT OF A PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT AND PRELIMINARY PLAN IN THE B-3 DISTRICT FOR A FUNERAL HOME FACILITY Moved by Commissioner Samuels,seconded by Commissioner Krug to recommend approval to the Village Board of the petition for approval of an amendment to the Planned Unit Development in the B-3 Planned Business Center District and approval of a Preliminary Plan to build a funeral home facility with a total building area of approximately 30,214 square feet,pursuant to the testimony and exhibits presented and subject to: 1. No two funerals at the same time Li 2. Requirements of the Fire Department concerning turning radii and access around the building 3. Approval by IDOT for right-out driveway onto Dundee Road Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Regular Meeting-February 4, 1998-Page 2 Commissioner Samuels stated this area along Dundee Road is older and needs some infusion of successful businesses and capital,and the proposed funeral home is appropriate for this site. Commissioner Berman state he has no conceptual problem with a funeral home as a use. He believes the Dundee Road corridor is appropriate for commercial use. He noted concern with the size and capacity of the proposed facility which will not improve traffic conditions in the area. However, a chapel built for 400 capacity holds a reasonable basis to assume it will be filled on a regular basis. He further noted there is no doubt this will have an impact on the residents, however,the Village's traffic expert agrees with the assessment of the petitioner's traffic expert. He noted he is not convinced that this traffic impact for this facility will be substantially worse than the office development that was originally approved and will therefore vote in favor of the motion to approve. Commissioner Krug stated he also does not feel the traffic impact will be that great. He asked about the dumping of fluids into the sanitary sewer and whether same is safe. Mr. Freedman stated blood does go directly into the sanitary sewer system and is not required to be treated. Mr. Murray stated any clothing or fluids cleaned from the bodies go into infectious waste buckets which are then picked up by a special service. Chairman Goldspiel stated he is still concerned that there is the potential for traffic problems due to development of the funeral home. The petitioner's traffic expert has stated it could take 8 to 10 minutes to exit Golfview for funeral home visitors not involved in a procession going to a cemetery. He stated he cannot accept a design which does not address the capacity of the facility and this is a design which is much less than the 400 person capacity of the facility. A traffic delay of 8 to 10 minutes several times per day to gain access to Dundee Road is an unreasonable impact for residents and is not in accordance with the Special Use criteria. He further noted that office development is now occurring in Chicago and the suburbs, so it seems possible that the original office plan or some modified plan may be feasible for this site. In summary,the proposed use is appropriate but the scale of the development as currently proposed is too large and should not be recommended for approval. Commissioner Howard concurred with Chairman Goldspiel and stated she does not feel this proposal is in harmony with the neighbors. Commissioner Viehman stated he is not satisfied that the Special Use criteria have been adequately addressed by the petitioner in terms of the nature and intensity of the operation nor in terms of injuriousness to the use of the adjoining area and properties. If this were being proposed as a 10,000 to 15,000 square foot facility, it would have less impact and he would not object. With the size and intensity that is being projected,he cannot recommend approval. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Regular Meeting-February 4, 1998-Page 3 Chairman Goldspiel called for a vote on the motion and the vote was as follows: AYES: Samuels, Berman NAYES: Krug, Howard, Trilling,Moons,Viehman,Goldspiel ABSENT: Ottenheimer ABSTAIN: None The motion failed 6 to 2. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT-None FUTURE AGENDA SCHEDULE Mr. Pfeil stated there will be public hearings on February 18, 1998 concerning the Buffalo Grove Park District's learning center and golf facility at Busch Grove Park and Northwest Community Healthcare's proposed antenna tower on McHenry Road. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS -None STAFF REPORT-None NEW BUSINESS -None ADJOURNMENT Moved by Commissioner Samuels, seconded by Commissioner Trilling and carried unanimously to adjourn. Chairman Goldspiel adjourned the meeting at 12:40 p.m. Respec ly submitt Fay ubi , ording Secretary APPROVED BY: TE HEN GOLDSPIEL hairman Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Regular Meeting-February 4, 1998-Page 4 PUBLIC HEARING BUFFALO GROVE PLAN COMMISSION February 4, 1998 The Community Chapel of Buffalo Grove,the Covington Office Plaza,southwest corner of Dundee Road/Golfview Terrace Amendment of a Planned Unit Development and Preliminary Plan in the B-3 District for a funeral home facility Chairman Goldspiel 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 Goldspiel 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 Goldspiel Mr. Krug Ms. Howard Mr. Samuels Mr. Berman Mr. Trilling Mr. Moons Mr. Viehman Commissioners absent: Mr. Ottenheimer(recused prior to public hearing) Also present: Mr. Lawrence Freedman,Ash, Anos, Freedman& Logan Mr. Gerald Lindgren,Kenig, Lindgren, O'Hara,Aboona, Inc. Ms. Frances Fazio,Manhard Consulting, Ltd. Mr. Gary Hay, The Hay Company, Inc. Mr. James R. Murray,The Loewen Group Mr. Elroy Sandquist III,Attorney at Law Mr. Joseph E. Zgonina,Marchris Engineering, Ltd. Mr. Darrell Wright,J. Benes&Associates Mr. William Raysa,Village Attorney Mr. Richard Kuenider,Village Engineer Mr. Charles Hendricks,Village Trustee Ms. DeAnn Glover,Village Trustee Mr. Robert Pfeil,Village Planner Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 1 Commissioner Ottenheimer stated he has a conflict of interest which will preclude his participation in this public hearing,and he stated that he would recuse himself. Commissioner Ottenheimer left the meeting. The following exhibits were presented by the petitioner at the public hearing: Exhibit 1: Proposed Site Plan dated January 20, 1998 Exhibit 2: Model of Proposed Building and Site Exhibit 3: Landscape Rendering Exhibit 4: Exterior East Building Elevation Exhibit 5: Exterior South Building Elevation Exhibit 6: Exterior North Building Elevation Exhibit 7: Cross Section of Proposed Site Plan Exhibit 8: Proposed Lighting Plan Exhibit 9: Landscape Plan dated January 20, 1998 Exhibit 10: Basement Plan Exhibit 11: Second Floor Elevation Exhibit 12: First Floor Elevation Exhibit 13: West Side Parlor A Plan Exhibit 14: Parlor C Plan Exhibit 15: East Chapel Plan Exhibit 16: Proposed Basement Plan,reduced size Exhibit 17: First Floor Plan, reduced size Exhibit 18: Second Floor Plan,reduced size Exhibit 19: Square Footage Reduction Chart Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 2 Exhibit 20: Office Building Parking Designation(82 cars) Exhibit 21: Proposed Office Building Parking Exhibit 22: Typical Average Procession Chart Exhibit 23: Typical Expanded Procession Chart Exhibit 24: Funeral Procession Surveys Exhibit 25: Intersection Level of Service and Delay Mr. Lawrence Freedman of Ash,Anos, Freedman&Logan stated the petitioner is seeking to amend an existing Planned Unit Development and for preliminary plan approval to allow for the construction of a non-denominational funeral chapel in lieu of two previously approved office buildings. Mr. Freedman noted the letter from Kingswood United Methodist Church dated December 17, 1997 which sets forth the conditions under which the church is prepared to enter into a formal agreement for shared parking. He noted that the formal agreement has not been finalized. He indicated that the proposed project provides more off-street parking than is required by the Village Zoning Ordinance, and the parking spaces on the Kingswood property would be excess, not spaces required by ordinance for the proposed funeral home. The additional overflow parking is not expected to be needed. However, as long as this mutual accommodation is apparently available,they are happy to enter into such an agreement. Mr. James Murray of the Loewen Group stated they are proposing a non-denominational funeral home expected to serve approximately 500 families after about a five year period. Of these 500 families it is expected about 350 will use the funeral home for services. Mr. Freedman stated that for purposes of calculation they have assumed an error factor of 50% and therefore projected not the 350 on site services which are believed will occur,but 450 to 500 for purposes of computation only. This totals an average of 1'/2 services per day even with the error factor in there. Mr. Murray stated they anticipate about 85%of the business for the proposed funeral home will come from a 5 to 7 mile radius. He noted a study of a two-year period for the Oehler funeral homes with the following results: 1 Oehler in DesPlaines serviced 817 families of which 519 involved on site services or visitation Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 3 2. .Oehler in Arlington Heights serviced 553 families of which 408 resulted in on site services or visitation 3. The Weinstein facility in Wilmette serviced approximately 1,800 families of which 1,314 resulted in on site services Mr. Murray stated an off-site service usually involves a graveside service with no visitation or services at the funeral home. There may also be immediate cremation with no services or immediate burial with no services at all. He stated the proposed funeral home is expected to have about 25% of its business from Jewish families. Mr. Murray stated anytime there is a funeral there will be on-site staff members at the driveway entrance to the Covington office property to greet people and to ask them if they will be going to the cemetery. He then indicated the areas for processional lineup for those cars taking part in the procession. All processions will be exiting Dundee Road eastbound. Processions will then proceed to Buffalo Grove Road where the procession will then head south to Palatine Road and then either east or west depending on cemetery location. There is the eventuality that the procession may need to go north on Buffalo Grove Road to reach cemeteries to the north. The percentage for this need is, however,very small as there are very few cemeteries in this direction. Mr. GaryHayof the HayCompany Inc. stated the site is 5.3-acres. The original Covin on P Y � office building has a footprint of 12,256 square feet with two floors and a total of 24,512 square feet. The proposed funeral home has a footprint of 16,743 square feet. The proposed building has a second floor and basement for a total of square footage of 30,214 feet. The setback from Dundee Road has been maintained at 35 feet. The setback on Park View Terrace which was originally 10 feet has now been set at 25 feet. He noted the berm could be extended up to 8 feet in height rather than the 5 feet shown on the model if desired. The funeral home would be 500 feet from the front door of the Covington Manor Condominium to the proposed building. Mr. Hay stated one of the major changes to the plan is that there is now an exit only onto Dundee Road on the western part of the property for processional exits as well as some of the people using the Covington office building. Mr. Hay stated all parking spaces and aisles are now marked with dimensions and the aisles are about 2 feet wider than what is required by code. In addition they have laid out a sidewalk between this property and the church property to be used to share approximately 50 parking spaces if needed. The proposed plan now calls for 271 parking spaces and 3 additional spaces in the garage. Parking for the office building will include 85 spaces. L Mr. Hay stated there are three pole lights on site now. He further noted they are proposing to use five similar lights on the site with softer residential lighting for part of the site. Mr. Hay stated they have now adjusted the exterior of the garage door and opening on the north Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 4 elevation to include moldings, camouflaged with compatible paint color. Signage on Dundee Road would be approximately five feet in height and 31 feet in length and curved. He further noted their intent is to use a maximum amount of landscaping. Mr. Hay stated the basement contains 6,643 square feet. There is a body storage area for 6 to 8 bodies. The center is a typical storage area. The rest of the area contains behind the scenes type of facilities for the operation of the funeral home. The first floor contains 16,743 square feet with parlors on the west side. Most funerals will use Parlor A and the center parlor which allows `./ for a maximum of 120 people plus 9 on sofas and family area. A small funeral would be held in Parlor B which seats 49 to 59 people. The chapel on the east side can hold 392 people plus sofa seating. It could also be used for 215 people and 72 people for small sized funerals. Mr. Hay stated the second floor contains 6,828 square feet for casket and vault display as well as display of cremation urns. Other rooms would be arrangement rooms and offices as well as a library for community use. There would also be a balcony overlooking the first floor. He noted the proposed plan has now been reduced in size by 29.4%or 12,000 to 13,000 square feet. He said that in summary the proposed project is less dense than originally presented and less dense than the office development that was originally approved. Ms. Frances Fazio of Manhard Consulting stated much of the utilities were put in with the office complex built in the late 80's. There is water, sanitary sewers and storm drainage all through the site. She stated very little modification will need to be done with the new parking lot plan. She stated that the stormwater detention area was designed for the original office complex which had a paved and roofed area of approximately 3.8 acres of the 5.3-acre site . The proposed plan would have a paved area and roofed area of only 3.5-acres which is a slight reduction from the original office plan. She noted that the development will not aggravate the drainage problems in the area east of the site. She stated that the detention facility will not need any modification to its current configuration. Mr. Gerald Lindgren of Kenig, Lindgren, O'Hara,Aboona, Inc. stated the traffic impact analysis included intersection counts,review of traffic volumes at the intersection,monitoring of traffic in the area, reviewed signal timings and traffic control procedures in the area and estimation of demands relative to the funeral home proposal. He further noted they did numerous surveys at existing funeral home facilities in order to make accurate traffic projections for the proposed facility relating both to visitations during the week,funerals during the day and on Saturdays and Sundays. Mr. Lindgren stated that during the weekday rush hour they have estimated that a visitation that might be occurring would generate about 30 inbound vehicles and 30 outbound vehicles during that hour. There may be more after that hour but they are not at the same time as the concentrated peak and will not be significantly more and will not have a significant impact on the capacity of the intersection. During the midday he stated they estimate about 50 inbound movements and 65 outbound movements for a peak type operation. This is considered the Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 5 design peak. Mr. Lindgren stated he would like to respond to Commissioner Krug's previous question relative to the traffic study that was done for the original three-office building plan and Covington Manor residential development. He said that they have reviewed the original traffic study and have analyzed the traffic impact of the three-office building plan and the adjacent residential development. He said that the current 132 unit residential development generates traffic volumes of 55 inbound movements and 20 outbound movements in the evening peak hour. He stated what was estimated originally was 59 inbound movements and 30 outbound movements. For the office facility today, 15 inbound movements and 55 outbound movements were counted during the evening peak hour. He stated they multiplied these figures by 3 to estimate what would happen with three buildings in the future after increasing for the 10%vacancy in the existing facility. He noted they estimated an additional 50 inbound movements in the evening and 190 outbound movements. What was estimated in the original report was 22 inbound movements and 109 outbound movements. The reason the existing facility is generating slightly higher volumes than what was originally estimated is because of the type of operation which includes medical/professional operations. Mr. Lindgren stated one difference between the original report and the present study is that about 1/4 of the traffic that gets from Golfview onto Dundee shows a 50/50 split on traffic going east and west. The original report anticipated a slightly higher split to the west than to the east. Mr. Lindgren stated they estimate a peak parking demand of around 200 which is a design peak. He stated they feel the 270 plus spaces available will accommodate parking demand, including the office facility. He suggested the use of color coding instead of signage for designation of office spaces. There would be some signs scattered in the facility to designate parking. Mr. Lindgren reviewed the processional line ups on the site noting same can accommodate the procession,parking for the funeral and the office parking particularly since there is some excess space. He further noted the Village traffic consultant has generally agreed with this and that it will also be possible to comply with the suggestions in the report by the Fire Department. Mr. Lindgren stated they surveyed attendance at funerals and vehicle procession lengths in January. The observations at the sited three funeral homes noted that much fewer people join the processional than attend the funeral services. Therefore,when speaking of funeral processions in the range of 25 to 30 vehicles are accurate. Mr. Lindgren reviewed intersection timings and delays on processions noting it takes about 15 minutes after the service to get the procession organized to leave. Once that procession is in order and ready to go, vehicles can be discharged in under 3 seconds per vehicle. This means the entire procession can be out and gone within a few minutes and will probably only affect one or two cycles of the intersection. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 6 Mr. Freedman stated the request is for an amendment to an existing Planned Unit Development which requires compliance with three sections of the Zoning Ordinance, specifically the Special Use criteria,the Planned Unit Development criteria and the B-3 Planned Business Center District. He addressed these criteria as follows: 1. The reports from the Police Department,Village Engineer,Village traffic consultant, and Fire Department,along with the testimony of petitioner's consultants clearly indicate that this development will be compatible with `.J surrounding uses from the standpoint of not endangering the public health, safety, morals or comfort; 2. The district in which this proposed development is located is a business district. Nevertheless,the concerns of the Commission relative to the size of the operation, the multiplicity of uses,the method of egress, and uses both at Dundee Road and Park View Terrace led to modifications to ensure that the development will be in harmony with the appropriate,orderly development of the district in which it is located; 3. This district already permits the development of two additional office buildings and the testimony presented consistently represents that the proposed use will have a lesser impact on balance than would that of the two office buildings under the approved plan; 4. There is no adjacent land to be developed and therefore the special use will not impede, substantially hinder,or discourage development of any adjacent land and buildings in accord with the zoning district within which they lie; 5. Adequate utilities, access roads, drainage and/or other necessary facilities have been provided and, in fact, will not be changed; 6. The parking, stacking and egress on Dundee have all been changed from the original presentation in order to ensure that they will be of adequate size for the particular special use,which areas shall be properly located and suitably screened from adjoining residential uses,and the entrance and exit driveways to and from these parking areas shall be designed so as to prevent traffic hazards,eliminate nuisance, and minimize traffic congestion in the public streets. Mr. Freedman further stated the Planned Unit Development criteria are as follows: Li 1. The proposed use will have a lesser impact than the two approved offices and the testimony of petitioner's engineer clearly supports the fact that there will be no negative impact with respect to the functions of the natural environment; Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 7 1 2. The proposed location,now totally located along Dundee Road, is much less impactive than the two approved office buildings. The maximum distance from this use and the screening proposed from the residential area is far superior than that which would be achieved under the approved plan; 3. The preservation of adequate,permanent open space for the use of the residents in the development is not applicable as it is not now nor will it be residential in nature; Li 4. The provision of land area necessary to accommodate any cultural,educational, recreational, or other public and quasi-public activities necessary to serve the needs of the neighborhood is also not applicable as it is more appropriate to a residential development; 5. The original objection to this plan with respect to land use was the multiplicity of uses and the failure to adequately separate the proposal from the residents in the rear. This has now been accomplished and an orderly and creative arrangement of all land uses has been achieved; 6. The provision of developed recreational activity areas necessary to serve the needs of the residential portion of the development is not applicable in this case as this is not a residential development; 7. There is adequate pedestrian access on the site and if, and when,a mutual cooperation is formed with the church,there will be appropriate pedestrian crosswalks installed. Mr. Freedman reviewed the Planned Business Center standards noting as follows: 1. The plan has been modified to separate same from the residential area and considerable landscaping and screening has been added to comply with the required standards; 2. There will be no merchandise,materials,or equipment stored in any open areas and there will be no liquefied petroleum gases or propane fuel on site; 3. Setback distances for the proposed facility are well in excess of the required 50 feet from any residential property line. Li Commissioner Krug asked how many people using the Wilmette facility will be drawn to the proposed facility. Mr. Murray stated one of the major criteria for people selecting a funeral home has to do with Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 8 prior service. He stated they do not anticipate drawing many families away from the Weinstein facility in Wilmette. In addition, there is a plan by another funeral home in Arlington Heights to build a funeral home adjacent to Shalom cemetery property which would have a great impact. Commissioner Howard asked if the plan will accommodate the requirements of the Fire Department. Mr. Lindgren stated yes. Commissioner Howard asked if definite IDOT approval has been received for the exit drive on Dundee Road. Mr. Lindgren stated they have received concept approval from IDOT which means they will permit the drive. However,the petitioner must submit engineering detail and must follow up with IDOT in terms of the fmal design. Mr. Freedman stated he would have no difficulty in attaching a condition requiring approval of the access driveway to Dundee by IDOT. Commissioner Howard asked how many funerals are anticipated for this facility on a daily basis. Mr. Murray stated they hope to do 500 funerals per year after an initial five year period. Mr. Freedman stated they anticipate serving 500 families per year after five years and they anticipate serving those families will entail 350 services on site. For purposes of discussion they are assuming they are off by 50%and have therefore been using a number between 450 to 500. They are willing to accept that number for all calculations. Commissioner Howard asked if that is spread over a 7 day period. Mr. Freedman stated that is correct. Commissioner Howard asked what the hours of operation are. Mr. Murray stated the hours of operation are 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Commissioner Trilling asked if there is any one day busier than another. `.J Mr. Murray stated there is the slightly more activity the day after a holiday due to the fact that certain cemeteries are closed on some holidays and there may be more services on the day following such a holiday. Commissioner Trilling asked if there is any intention for funeral office staff to use the adjoining Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 9 I I �/ I �./ I�i I� II _ _ _ - - - __ office building. Mr. Freedman stated they have discussed renting space in the adjoining office building but no decisions have been made. Commissioner Trilling asked if any parking spaces would be lost by changing the curb radii to meet the Fire Department's requirements. Mr. Lindgren stated he did not believe so. Commissioner Trilling asked how many normal spaces are lost and how many gained by double stacking in a north/south procession. Mr. Lindgren stated it is almost one for one. If a row of two vehicles is put in a parking aisle, just about as many are parked in a procession type format as would be normally parked. Commissioner Trilling asked if consideration had been given to turning the east/west parking on the south side of the parking lot into a north/south direction continuous with the existing parking. Mr. Lindgren stated they had considered same but felt that it would be a better parking arrangement as proposed and it also allows for landscaped islands. In addition,the proposed parking plan provides more parking at a better ratio. Commissioner Trilling asked how vehicles not joining a procession would exit the site. Mr. Lindgren stated those vehicles would exit onto Golfview and go through the signal to get out. Some would also use the Dundee access although they would be held back once the procession begins. Commissioner Trilling asked if office parking will also be allowed to exit from the secondary driveway onto Dundee. Mr. Lindgren stated he sees no reason not to allow this movement. Commissioner Trilling noted it would probably be 10 to 20 minutes before people not going to the procession actually leave the premises. Mr. Lindgren stated most people who are not in the procession are probably gone within the initial 15 minutes during which a procession is being set up. There will, of course,be some left who will be held up by the procession. However,at 3 seconds per vehicle for the procession exit, it would only be 90 seconds for 30 vehicles which is literally one traffic light cycle. With 60 vehicles it would take 180 seconds which is about two cycles. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 10 Commissioner Trilling noted a greater number of vehicles would not be in the procession when there is a 60 vehicle procession and asked about how many that would be. Mr. Lindgren stated that would be approximately 150 total that would not be in the procession. This, of course,would be an extremely large funeral. Commissioner Trilling noted these kinds of numbers would add substantial clearing times to the Golfview intersection. Mr. Freedman noted that in dealing with an unusually large funeral as posed by Commissioner Trilling,there would be help from the Police Department. Commissioner Trilling asked what the ratio is for the number of people per vehicle attending a funeral. Mr. Lindgren stated the ratio is 2.5 people per vehicle. However, it is not always the same. Some funerals have more people coming singly and others have many families coming. Commissioner Berman asked what the typical number of exiting vehicles per hour on a non-peak basis is on Golfview at present. Mr. Lindgren stated probably less than half of what is shown as peak hour exiting on the survey sheets is exiting onto Golfview during the midday period. This is approximately 40 cars per hour. Commissioner Berman asked how many vehicles can exit the intersection,given the 3 second estimation,per cycle. Mr. Lindgren stated possibly 20 cars per cycle could exit at this intersection. Commissioner Berman noted he did not feel this was realistic. Commissioner Berman asked what the maximum number of cars could realistically exit Golfview in a cycle. Mr. Lindgren noted his example was, in fact,considering a saturation condition. He further noted Golfview has a width capable of handling two lanes,although it is not striped that way. In essence, however, that is how the street operates and there appears to be about a 50/50 split on right and left turns. Commissioner Berman asked what the maximum delay is for someone leaving the residential area who gets caught in the funeral traffic flow. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 11 Mr. Lindgren stated they could conceivably wait 8 to 10 minutes. Commissioner Berman asked where a 100 car funeral would be stacked. Mr. Lindgren stated they would actually have to be put into parking stalls. He further noted this kind of a funeral would be very rare. Commissioner Berman noted this development contains a chapel built for a capacity of 400. At this kind of attendance and with a 20 to 30%attendance in a procession, it is easy to get into the 60 to 100 car range for the procession. Mr. Lindgren noted the statistics presented show very few of these types of occurrences. Commissioner Moons noted it would appear that only 3 to 4 cars can go through the intersection on a regular basis as experienced by those in the audience. This being the case,then trying to get 60 cars to leave the area would require a significant amount of time. Mr. Lindgren stated he does not agree with this assessment. He stated there is no saturated situation which would push this intersection to capacity and bring it to the point where it would become that bad. Commissioner Samuels asked at what point a funeral is considered large enough to require police help for dispersal. Mr. Murray stated many factors are taken into account such as the age of the deceased,whether there is a large family,whether the deceased is a local personality or business leader, etc. In other words,they would never be taken by surprise. Mr. Murray further stated if 20 to 25 cars not included in a procession need to get out after a funeral service, he would most likely call for police assistance. Commissioner Samuels asked if this police assistance would be paid for. Mr. Murray stated they would pay for such assistance if they were to give advance notice to the police. However, if a situation occurs spontaneously,they would assume such help would be forthcoming. He further noted he has spoken to the Buffalo Grove Police Department and has received this kind of feedback. Commissioner Viehman asked what is the Loewen Group's intent with regard to the office building relative to the tenants that are currently there. Mr. Freedman stated it is not Loewen's intention to occupy or take over a substantial part of that building. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 12 Chairman Goldspiel asked for an explanation of the Fire Department's concerns and a comment by Mr. Wright of Benes &Associates. Mr. Wright stated the Fire Department raised the issue on the four corners of the building on the site plan and whether the fire truck would be able to get through, particularly if there are parked cars. He stated they used a template of the wheel path for a fire truck and overlaid same on the site plan. He stated they have looked at all four corners to ensure maneuverability for fire trucks and have made several suggestions for either removing cars or pulling curbs further out in order to facilitate turning movements for the fire trucks. Chairman Goldspiel asked if the intersection at Dundee and Golfview would function better if it were striped into two lanes. Mr. Lindgren stated he feels the intersection is operating reasonably well as is. He noted striping restricts movements and may not be necessary here. It may be a good idea to improve lane markings at this intersection to make it brighter than it is now. Chairman Goldspiel asked what the view is for someone standing on the south curb of Park View Terrace looking at the site. Mr. Hay stated the berm is 8 feet in height and the building is 19 feet, 6 inches. Mr. Lindgren stated a resident on the first floor of his home can look across the berm and probably would not see any of the vehicles or lower level of any existing facilities. With some foliage on the trees,the only thing visible would be about the top 1/4 to '/2 of the building at best. Chairman Goldspiel asked if there would be sufficient space for the planting on top of the berming to flourish. Mr. Hay stated they have been using sprinkler systems throughout many projects, as would be used here, so that there would be no maintenance problems. He further noted an agreement with the existing office building under which Loewen would be maintaining all the properties. Commissioner Viehman asked if the detention plans both past and present have been reviewed and verified. Mr. Kuenkler stated all the improvements in existence were constructed in conjunction with the first office building and will service the proposed project. Mr. Elroy Sandquist stated he is the attorney representing the Covington Manor Condominium Association comprised of 132 homes immediately to the south of the proposed facility. He stated the simultaneous funeral services and processions will have a deleterious impact on the surrounding community. These services will be 7 days per week until 9 or 10 p.m. whereas an Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 13 office complex is Monday through Friday, 9 to 5 p.m. Mr. Sandquist stated he does not feel the standards for a Special Use have been met. He stated specifically the plan fails in that it is not in harmony with the appropriate, orderly development of the district in which it is located. Further, it will be injurious to the use and enjoyment of other property in the immediate vicinity. Finally, it does not meet the requirement that parking areas shall be of adequate size and the entrance and exit driveways to and from these parking areas shall be designed so as to prevent traffic hazards,eliminate nuisance and minimize traffic congestion in the public streets. Mr. Sandquist noted the Village approved the construction of Covington and assured the homeowners that they would have alternate access other than Golfview. Apparently this is not feasible and because of the unique landlocked nature of the Covington and Coves developments, this plan is not suitable for this site. The proposed curb cut on Dundee directing all processions to the east does nothing to change the fundamental negative impact upon the residents. He stated the residents have a right to be angry with a site plan which has been scaled down as a concession,while leaving the size of the chapel space basically the same,and providing a curb cut which does not change the deleterious nature of the traffic situation. Mr. Joseph Zgonina noted his professional qualifications and stated he has been retained to evaluate the subject property from a civil and traffic engineering standpoint. He stated the funeral home itself is basically a good land use but does not belong at this location. He stated the major issue facing this project is what happens in the evenings. The majority of people going to this type of land use show up at night. With parlors holding 300-400 people, there is a great deal of concern. Residents go out at night to recreational facilities and commercial developments which also have their major use in the evenings. The concern with this project is the number of vehicles that will be arriving at night after 7:00 p.m. He stated this is not a limited type of land use. Instead he noted this is use which will run from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30-10:00 p.m. There are various facets to the operations of a land use of this type. Various employees and deliveries start the mornings off. Then there are people coming to the facility during the day to make funeral arrangements. Basically this is an all day land use. He stated this is a land use which does not belong in this area because it is competing with a residential development to the south as well as the office facilities to the west. Mr. Zgonina stated the traffic study does not indicate what will happen at night. Nowhere is any data presented as to how many cars will be entering and exiting this site after 7:00 p.m. when you have the greatest number of people who will be utilizing this facility for wakes and visitations. Those traffic volumes which will occur well into the evening are going to have the conflicts on the adjacent land uses into the area. People from the south will not be able to gain access out to the roadway. He stated there is competition for the lane capacity on the street system, and more so at night because of the inadequate signal timing which currently exists at this location. Mr. Zgonina stated that when you do not have adequate data for a particular type of land use Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 14 which is published data, it is necessary to obtain data from competing type of land uses. He noted it is his opinion the data which was presented should have included the size of the facility, the number of funerals, and the activities of the Grove Chapel on the north side of Buffalo Grove. Therefore,he does not feel the Village has adequate data to determine if the projections as presented in the traffic report are accurate. He further noted that 30 cars during the peak hour is definitely misleading information as any land use which generates only 30 cars does not even require discussions because the street system can absorb that type of traffic. But,the report does not address the fact of getting the cars into and out of the facility without impacting the other �./ users of that roadway. Mr. Zgonina noted Golfview Terrace is not only used by the residents to the south but by the church and day care center to the west which uses Golfview Terrace for access to its property. In addition, the office facility itself creates competition for traffic and parking. Anyone who wants to gain access to the office building now has to cut through cars and landscaping in order to gain access to the building. Currently this is not the situation. Every land use has parking perpendicular to the building instead of parallel. In this case parking is parallel to the office building and perpendicular to the proposed funeral home. Therefore,the primary use on this property is now switched from the office facility to the funeral home. He further noted the required parking for one funeral home is equivalent to two office buildings. In addition, it will be very confusing to have color coded parking. Mr. Zgonina further stated the parking and queuing for the funeral processions which are lined up will not work. He noted you cannot park vehicles in the southwest corner or southeast corner of the parking lot and yet try to have sufficient room available that will not compete with the people trying to get into and out of the parking lot for the office building itself. Mr. Zgonina stated the Fire Department equipment being analyzed would be a pumper truck and does not provide for the use of a hook and ladder truck which may be necessary for this two story property. In addition the turning radius provided will not be sufficient for a hook and ladder truck. Even the pumper truck could not pass under a canopy and therefore a by-pass lane in front of the canopy would be necessary. Mr. Zgonina stated that because of the hydraulic radiant of the stormsewer located at the northwest corner of the building which is to be extended to the west to pick up the parking areas and driveways in front of the building,the site will need to be lowered. Lowering the site causes a conflict with the potential high water elevation with respect to the overflowing of storm water out into Dundee Road. This means the building would have to be set approximately two feet higher than the existing ground elevation. If this done the current driveway slope from the property line of Dundee Road down to the apron of Dundee Road is 4.6%which is too steep for a commercial driveway. Mr. Zgonina further stated he felt it would be very difficult to institute shared parking with the church facility to the south. He stated the ability to park next door is very remote as most people Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 15 would not want to do that. Mr. Zgonina stated it will be impossible to raise the berm to 8 feet. He noted you need over 30 feet in order to get a 5 foot high berm to be able to properly mow same.He stated the Golfview Terrace pavement is older and probably does not have the proper structural coefficient to be able to accommodate the volume of traffic which will be generated by this facility. If this facility is considered,the developer should be held responsible for the repair of this roadway in bringing it up to the standards necessary to be able to accommodate the volume of traffic which will be generated by this facility. In addition,there are no streetlights which will make it difficult for people to see where the driveway is located which will cause additional backups unto the street system. He further stated there is insufficient green time in the signal system to be able to accommodate large volumes of traffic which will be coming into the facility at night. He stated you cannot increase the length of the left turn lane because the entrance taper hits the median break at Betty Lane. From a geometric standpoint there is not enough room on Dundee Road to be able to improve the facility to have more capacity for left turners trying to get into this property. He also stated the traffic signal at Golfview and Dundee is rather archaic and outdated and recommended the petitioner be responsible for the total redevelopment and reconstruction of the signalized intersection in order to be able to get more green time. Mr. Zgonina stated the parking plan which has been presented does not work. The length of distance a person would have to walk either to the office facility or the proposed funeral home is questionable. There are conflicts with the circulation drives within the parking lot which does not increase the efficiency of the operation of the parking lot and only leads to traffic backups and the potential for accidents or hitting pedestrians. Mr. Zgonina stated the mixture of land uses is good from a development standpoint. However, this site has three types of land uses and you have the conflict of the funeral home all day long competing with the residential land uses to the south as well as the office facilities. From a traffic standpoint this is not the land use that belongs on this site. Mr. Zgonina stated that this type of land use dictates to everyone what can be done. There is no freedom of movement to leave your residence to get out onto the roadway. There will be competition for the residents to the south in trying to get out at night with all the evening visitations and wakes compounded during the day with funeral processions. Commissioner Krug asked what evidence there is to support the testimony that residents had been promised a second access. Mr. Sandquist stated he has no such specific evidence. Commissioner Krug stated he does not recall there ever being a notion of a second access to the site. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 16 Chairman Goldspiel commented that he has reviewed the minutes of the Plan Commission discussion concerning the second access to Covington. He indicated that the record shows that although the Village tried to achieve a second access,the effort was not successful and the Covington development was approved with Golfview Terrace as the only access. Mr. Sandquist apologized and stated it was his understanding there had certainly been discussions about such access and several of his clients had been under such impression. Commissioner Krug stated there had been such discussions at the time the development was proposed. However, a second access was impossible due to constraints by adjoining communities and surrounding land uses. Mr. Arnold Slutsky of 516 Parkview Terrace,representing The Coves,reviewed Mr. Freedman's response of January 23, 1998 to a letter sent to him by the Board of Directors of The Coves of Buffalo Grove dated December 9, 1997 asking for specific information. He noted the letter stated as follows: 1. The financial details requested are proprietary to the Loewen Group and therefore will not be provided. Mr. Slutsky stated they had asked for this information was to determine if the volume figures would justify the expense of this facility and remain a viable tax producing entity. In addition they felt this facility could become an embalming clearinghouse for other facilities as shown on 60 Minutes. 2. The number of total funerals,visitations and other services performed for the two year period from January 1, 1996 through December 19, 1997 with respect to the specific facilities referred to in your letter are: a) 817 families served at Oehler- Des Plaines of which 519 resulted in visitation and 298 involved no visitation; b) 553 families served at Oehler-Arlington Heights of which 408 resulted in visitation and 148 resulted in no visitation; c) 1,800 families served at the Weinstein facility in Wilmette which included only 12 visitations separate from funeral services. Mr. Slutsky noted the Oehler facility in DesPlaines had 519 visitations and is a much small funeral home than the proposed facility as is the Oehler facility in Arlington Heights. In addition these funeral homes had no Jewish funerals. The Weinstein facility is also smaller than the proposed development. He questioned the limited amount of usage proposed by the petitioner, noting that the other funeral homes are all smaller with less body storage and yet already have the numbers of funerals that will equal the ones at the proposed site. 3. They anticipate after 5 years of operation, serving approximately 500 families per year at the proposed facility of which approximately 350 of which would actually Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 17 involve a funeral service at the facility. Even assuming a 50%error factor,we anticipate a total at most of 450-500 events per year at the facility of an average of 1 %2 services per day on an annualized basis. Inasmuch as we project only about 25%of the families to be served will be Jewish, our projections are in keeping with the actual statistics of experience generated by the existing Loewen facilities heretofore referred to. Mr. Slutsky stated that with a large Jewish population in Buffalo Grove, Wheeling,Arlington Heights and Long Grove, there will be more than the proposed 25%. This is the second largest facility in the entire Chicagoland area and it therefore seems strange that they will do less business here than at any of their smaller facilities. 4. With respect to the request for names and locations of existing funeral homes which function with a residential street as the main traffic access,we feel that Golfview Terrace is not such a street. Inasmuch as Golfview Terrace has been designed to and, in fact,does accommodate the office building presently existing on the site, we take issue with your characterizations that it is a residential street. Furthermore our modified proposal provides for all funeral processions to exit the property on Dundee Road and completely avoid Golfview Terrace. Mr. Slutsky noted that every single vehicle must enter through Golfview Terrace. Those cars not in the procession will also be using Golfview Terrace which will still put homeowners at the mercy of the funeral home seven days per week from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Mr. Bob Haskin of the Dunlo Highlands Homeowners' Association stated Dunlo Highlands is a subdivision of about 70 homes east of Covington and they are still concerned with the stormwater flooding received from this property. He stated Dunlo Highlands has become Covington's fourth retention pond . He further stated all of the funeral traffic heading east on Dundee Road will block Golfview,Betty, Ellen and Old Buffalo Grove Road. It is anticipated that most of the traffic will also turn right on Buffalo Grove Road and also block residents exiting onto Buffalo Grove Road. He asked that any plan for this property include a plan to eliminate the flooding in Dunlo Highlands and that the Village of Buffalo Grove request that IDOT allow traffic exiting the funeral home to turn eastbound and westbound on Dundee Road. This would at least lessen the severity of expected traffic delays. Mr. Felix Gurais, 1002 Brentwood Circle,noted the proposed overflow traffic to be parked at the church will be coming down Parkview Terrace to share parking at a church facility which already is saturated with activities well into the evening hours. The effects of the church traffic are already being felt by the residents. He also stated most people will forego parking in the church lot in favor of double parking on Golfview. Mr. Bob Wakeum,486 Parkview, asked the Commission to consider the figures offered by the petitioner about how much usage there will be at this proposed development. He noted this is Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 18 much larger than a typical funeral home. He asked why the plans are calling for two embalming tables which could conceivably embalm 12 bodies per day. If there are only to be 1 'A funerals per day, why is this the case. He stated he certainly hopes this facility will not be a central facility for embalming bodies for other funeral homes. Mr. Murray stated this would not be the case and further noted that Mr. Loewen himself has stated they will not be centralizing their services. Mr. Wakeum asked why then the capacity to embalm 10 to 12 bodies per day. Mr. Murray stated all embalming does not take place in one day. Mr. Wakeum stated he believes that the kind of facility being proposed at this site is going to be used for more than 1%Z funerals per day. He further noted that the proposed parlor for 400 will be used frequently and shows how much the facility will be used. Mr. Mark Allen, 393 Covington Terrace, noted that the Washington Post considers the Loewen Group as one of the big three in the funeral business and stated the article further stated "all three large chains operate under what they call the cluster principle,buying more than one facility in an area to share operating costs and maximize profits. Hearses and limos use one central transportation facility and bodies are collected by individual funeral homes but processed through a central board." Mr. Anthony Maiorello, Grove Memorial Chapel, stated his facility has been open since 1996 and they have serviced 50 families. He stated his facility is 9,700 square feet and is situated on 2.5 acres of land. He further stated the proposed project is proposing to do 500 funerals per year and does not know where these numbers will come from. He noted such a large development requires greater acreage. Mr. Howard Katzenstein,488 Parkview Terrace,noted this proposed development is not in accordance with the Special Use requirements based upon the intensity of this facility. He stated even though the building has been decreased in size,the number of funerals and the size of funerals have not changed and the function is therefore the same as it has been from the start. He further stated the new access onto Dundee has no impact on the residents who will be coming out on Golfview. Therefore,this new plan will have no different impact on the residents than originally planned. He further noted it took twice as long to sell homes in Covington in 1997 than it did in 1996 before this project was considered. Although there is no assurance that the cause is do to this development, it is something that should be considered. He noted the traffic study states the previous proposal had considered the safe and efficient access to and from Dundee could not be provided due to the site configuration. He suggested that nothing has changed here and it remains unsafe and inefficient for the residents and therefore urges a no vote for this proposal. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 19 Mr. Grant Christine, 363 Parkview Terrace, asked if overflow parking could really be prevented on Parkview Terrace if this project is built. He noted when residents have visitors,those visitors park on the street and there will not be sufficient room for any additional parking if the funeral home site begins to infringe on such parking. He also asked what happens to this facility if it fails. Mr. Gerald Bell, 351 Parkview Terrace, stated he does not believe anyone contracts for overflow parking unless they anticipate a need. Therefore all of this overflow traffic would need to be directed onto the church lot creating a tremendous traffic flow. In addition,these overflow vehicles may want to be included in processions and would further increase the traffic flow. Ms. Ruth Reynolds, 367 Parkview Terrace, stated that each new development in the area has brought visible changes to the detention process in the area. She asked where embalming fluid is drained. Mr. Mort Winokur, 371 Covington Terrace, asked what happens when overflow parking is directed to the church and conflicts with traffic pickup of children at the church occurs. He further asked where snow removal would be placed. Ms. Karen Latzel, 354 Dundee Parkway, stated she lives directly across the street from the proposed development. She stated she represents Whitehall Manor which is opposed to this development. She stated there is already a traffic problem at the corner of Golfview Terrace and Dundee Road. Adding another exit onto Dundee Road will further compound this problem. She stated there have been many accidents at this corner. In addition, she noted there has been flooding in the past on Dundee Road from Golfview down to Buffalo Grove Road. Both residential subdivisions and some businesses had sewer backups in several areas. There has been no discussion as to solving this problem. Further any waste from a funeral home does not have to be treated and goes down sewers. This area does not have an overlift pump system which prevents sewer backup. Ms. Carol Barnes, 3 Chenault Court, stated her sewers backed up last year and asked if the proposed development will further compound the problem. Mr. Raphael Pena, 355 Dundee Road, stated his business will be hurt when his patients are delayed through traffic congestion. In addition,the new parking configuration will make it difficult for some of his older patients to come into the office. He further noted there is no way to know what traffic will be like 5-10 years down the road on Dundee and this project may be creating a traffic nightmare. Li Ms. Marlene Kornick, 512 Parkview Terrace, stated the people in her community are very concerned about the detention ponds,the disposal of embalming fluids,rodents,and real estate values. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 20 Ms. Nina Tenney, 355 Dundee Road,noted embalming fluids are hazardous waste products and it may be a good idea to check what may be created if they are released into the air and sewers. Darrell Wright of Benes&Associates reviewed the signal timing surveys and funeral procession surveys. He stated there were no traffic figures for evenings or Saturdays because evening peak hours during the week would be very similar to what occurs midday on Saturdays which was analyzed. Mr. Wright noted the driveway access into and out of Golfview would not be closed even as a procession is forming. Further,he reviewed the parking plan stating that for efficiency and to avoid having people walk between vehicles, it would be better to have people go toward the use. However,the principal use for this site would now be for the funeral home and that is where you will now find the closer spaces oriented Mr. Wright stated the Buffalo Grove Fire Department has reviewed the plans and indicated the size of radii they require. He further noted the critical vehicle for the Fire Department is the pumper and not the hook and ladder as noted previously. He stated the west bound left turn lane on Dundee Road onto Golfview Terrace is about 75 feet,allowing for 3 cars with a fourth car in the taper portion. He noted that in the evenings, opposing traffic coming eastbound on Dundee is not as heavy and there will be more green time and gaps to allow for the left turns onto Golfview. Therefore this left turn lane is not overly deficient. Mr. Kuenkler stated the project was designed for the full parcel and he deems same to be adequate for this development. He further stated that as far as the drainage onto Dundee Road as noted by Mr. Scannina,he is not aware of a situation which cannot be addressed in final design. Mr. Lindgren stated the parallel aisles and perpendicular aisles has been addressed by Mr. Wright and further noted that from the standpoint of an office park this issue is not as critical as it might be in a shopping center as was also indicated by Mr. Wright. He stated they were trying to maximize parking, even though they are significantly over what the ordinance requires. Further, they felt they could provide the up-front circulation for the office building which they have done, with visitor parking facing the building and employee parking going out in a perpendicular angle. Mr. Lindgren noted they did survey evening traffic for visitations and found that a funeral for 113 people shows approximately 30 vehicles in and out. He further noted that evening visitation are spread out during the evening,creating no real rush. At 9:00 p.m. when visitation is over, they may occasionally be a significant number of vehicles coming out, although experience has shown it is usually still not a great deal of traffic. Ms. Fazio stated Mr. Scannina was analyzing a model which was done to scale in a 3- dimensional consideration as to building size,trees,and cars and was by no means a model of the proposed grading work or the existing grading work. Much of the contours and designs are strictly artistic. She further stated she is confident this site can work not only according to Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 21 Village ordinances but according to good engineering practice. Ms. Fazio stated Mr. Zgonina was correct in stating they will not be allowed to shed any drainage onto Dundee Road stormsewer system,nor would she propose to do such a thing. The percent slope which may be created may be on the higher side,however,she does not see a problem with using a 4 percent slope which will be used if found to be necessary. Mr. Freedman stated all of their consultants' testimony has met with concurrence from Village experts. There has been independent verification from the Police Department and Fire Department that this project is in concurrence with their requests. Despite the scepticism of traffic volumes,the reality is that the traffic counts are valid. He noted they do not need church parking for overflow as they are above ordinance requirements. He further stated that if there is a concern with this kind of agreement,they will not pursue same as they do not feel they will ever need overflow parking. Mr. Freedman stated the comments from the owner of Grove Memorial Chapel bears out their own projected counts. Mr. Maiorello expects a volume of 150 families served per year in five years. This would verify the expected number of 500 families served in five years for the projected development. Mr. Freedman stated every issue has been addressed as posed by the Plan Commission. The footprint has been reduced,the multiplicity of uses has been eliminated,IDOT has changed its position on Dundee access and landscaping and screening has been fully addressed. Ms. Dolores Cavanaugh, 397 Covington Terrace, asked if the Loewen Group is purchasing only lots 2 and 3 or the whole parcel which includes the existing office building. Mr. Freedman stated Loewen is buying only lots 2 and 3. Ms. Cavanaugh stated she had checked with the Clerk of Cook County and Lots 1, 2 and 3 were all owned together. Mr. Katzenstein asked if the restriction that there be no two funerals at the same time would be included in any recommendation. In addition,he asked that a restriction be placed that no more than 500 funerals per year be held and that there be no funeral at the same time as a visitation. They have also indicated that Sunday funerals would be infrequent and wondered if that might also be added as a restriction. Tom Damico, 373 Covington Terrace,asked why anyone would want to put a facility where the local community and surrounding residents do not want same. Ms. Reynolds noted that embalming fluid drains blood from a body. Therefore, both embalming fluid and blood drains into the sewers and she asked what can be done to keep sewers hygienic. Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 22 Mr. Freedman noted there are no laws requiring special disposal of these fluids or treatment g any P P of same. Dr. Pena stated hospitals are required to remove their infectious waste. He further noted that color coding of parking spaces may work for a while,but once it snows that is obliterated. There being no further comments or questions from anyone else present,Chairman Goldspiel closed the public hearing at 11: 40 p.m. Respec submi ed, t Fay Rubin, a ording Secretary APPROVED BY: _ "49P EN GOL SPIEL, Chairman Buffalo Grove Plan Commission-Public Hearing-February 4, 1998-Page 23