City of Highland Park Plan and Design Commission Met Jan. 5.
Here is the minutes provided by the commission:
I. CALL TO ORDER
At 7:30 PM Vice Chair Hainsfurther called the meeting to order and asked Director Fontane to call the roll.
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present: Hainsfurther, Lidawer, Marcus, Moore, Weil
Members Absent: Hecht, Reinstein
Director Fontane took the roll and declared a quorum present.
Staff Present: Cross, Fontane
Student Rep.: None
Corporation Counsel: Schuster
Council Liaison: None
III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
December 15, 2020 Regular Meeting
The December 15, 2020 PDC minutes will appear on the January 19, 2021 agenda for consideration.
IV. SCHEDULED BUSINESS
A. Design Review – 1340 Park Ave. West – Building Addition for Muller Volkswagen with Variation for Landscaping – continued from December 15, 2020.
Commissioner Marcus stated as a real estate broker she conducted a transaction with the applicant’s representative and sold a house to Mr. Yu six years ago. They have had no further dealings. She consulted with Corporate Counsel and confirmed there was no issue with the previous relationship and no need to recuse herself from the discussion on this item.
Planner Cross made a presentation for the above item including the addition to the Muller Volkswagen showroom, site plan, new front entrance portal, north elevation canopy and service bay entrance, color rendering, existing conditions, landscape relief requested, landscape plan, landscape variations standards and recommendation.
Commissioner Lidawer stated the last time she had asked about getting the numbers up and appreciated the Forester’s comments. She thought it was a lovely effort and she liked the two beds. They had made an effort and it evens out the numbers. They do have a special circumstance and part of the hardscape is the way they show their product. This is a small space for a dealership. She stated the northeast is great and it can been seen from the street and it enhances it. She asked what is at the southeast corner.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther asked what the adjoining property to the southeast is and thought it was the driveway going to Staples.
Planner Cross illustrated the locations of the planting areas on the GIS map.
Commissioner Lidawer asked about the west portion and if you look at the property with the spots it looks like there is one wider spot. She asked if they could put a few extra plants in that spot. It would enhance the area in terms of plantings. She asked if they could put plantings along the parkway toward the street. She did not know about the type of planting, but she would like to see as much green as possible.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated if you go farther east there is a parkway on the edge of the parking strip. They could extend it to the west.
Mr. Simon Yu, Architect, stated since their last discussion they asked the landscaper to look at the property and at the south corner of the lot there is a 6’ swath that is landscaped. There are four to five trees along that side. It is shown on the new site plan. They have four new trees and a handful of bushes along that side. They go over in terms of the tree requirement and are one over. They are under on the bush requirement. They are doubling the amount of landscape that exists. On the left side of the building where the dark square is they are taking out one tree and replacing with two larger beds. If it is a Hackberry or Hackberry Elm they will look to see if it produces sap. Regarding the additional request along the north, there are four cars that park there and they prefer not to do that.
Commissioner Lidawer commended them on adding the two beds. She saw the trees on the south and that gave her the idea to do something similar on the north side because the north is more of a community area. She understood they prefer not to do anything there and there are cars that park there. She asked if they could put in a small bed.
Mr. Yu stated he was authorized to make a counter offer in terms of that side. The aerial shows trees and most of them had been taken down. This is on the City’s property. The trees were taken down and the client would be willing to put some trees on the City property.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated he was having a hard time seeing where the property line is on the aerial. There is no sidewalk shown on the site plan and it is hard to understand exactly where the property line is. He did not know if the planting area south of the sidewalk is City property or Muller property.
Planner Cross stated the asphalt is installed to the property line.
Mr. Yu stated he thought the trees had been removed. He was there last week and it was far more sparse.
Commissioner Lidawer stated she drove by there and it was very sparse.
Commissioner Moore stated it is a difficult corner when you are exiting the lot to turn on Park Ave. It is difficult to see and she was concerned about any vegetation going along there in terms of the sight lines. If they feel they need to have more landscaping on the property maybe they could put it somewhere else.
Commissioner Weil asked what was happening on the northwest corner and if there is any room for plantings. It looks like there might be some space and it looks empty.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther thought they were talking about beyond the parking area. There are concerns with anything that will hide the cars from view because that is part of their sales area. He stated perhaps something low could be planted that does not block the sight line.
Planner Cross stated there are some big grade changes there as well.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated when you look at the aerial there is just one line of cars and now they will have two. They are actually increasing the number of cars on the site. He understood about blocking visibility of cars entering and exiting from that side. It looks like there are some opportunities created by the parking plan where there are a couple of wedge areas. As the property bends around you can see a wedge area that is created where the lot takes a bend in front of the Subaru dealer and another one a little farther south. He asked if there was opportunity to have greenery and eliminate some of the paving. The area floods and anything they can do to reduce impervious surface might help some of the conditions. He would not make it a condition. Along Park Ave. West there is a little wedge which could be grass.
Mr. Yu stated they did not pay attention to the Subaru side. They were not going to change any of the striping and all of the area is parking.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated there is still that little wedge and was it a parking space. He stated they had addressed what they had asked and he appreciated it.
Mr. Michael Laxner, Resident, stated at the south end of the property there was open space for a few more bushes and they are short on bushes.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated Mr. Laxner was referring to slightly farther east of where the trees are shown. Along the eastern edge the tree line stops and then dissipates. There is a grade change farther west and as you go east it is more like wheat trees. The existing shrubs need to be replaced.
Mr. Yu stated they could put a handful of shrubs along the southern border and some along the northwest corner.
Commissioner Lidawer motioned to accept the petitioner’s application for a variance to the renovations to the building for an additional 1,400 s.f. and a new landscape plan with the request they add additional shrubbery on the southwest and northwest corners.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated they would work with the Forester to decide on the correct tree. Commissioner Moore seconded.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther stated the approval should be consistent with the plans presented.
Commissioner Lidawer stated that was acceptable.
Director Fontane called the roll:
Ayes: Weil, Moore, Lidawer, Hainsfurther
Nays: None
Motion passed 4-0.
Director Fontane stated the item is approved with conditions to the plans as specified.
B. Pre-Application Discussion for a Residential Planned Development with Rezoning at 425 Bloom St. and Adjacent Properties on Waukegan Ave.
Planner Cross made a presentation for the above item including project location, first site plan, PDC feedback, key changes, off-street parking and recommendation.
Planner Cross read an email by Ernie Reinstein stating he applauded the developer for addressing the Bloom St. elevation and the on-site parking issues. He could not support a plan with the Bloom and Waukegan setbacks as proposed. He thought the Waukegan setback should be 20’ and the Bloom setback 25’. The plan should be as close as possible to meeting the 20% open space requirement. To achieve these parameters he would expect the density to decline. A townhouse project on this property is appropriate and is worthy of a zoning change, but not at the expense of the setback and open space parameters. He hoped the developer continues to refine the site plan, meets with the neighborhood and commits to the full PDC process.
Mr. David Schwartz, Applicant, stated the feedback was helpful and the plan is much improved. He made a presentation including the original site plan, new site plan, all townhomes, central courtyard, Waukegan and Bloom elevations, parklet, sample floor plans and affordable housing.
Commissioner Marcus stated she agreed with the need for something like this and thought the look was fantastic. It reminded her of the property on Laurel. She thought it fit into the area and was a pleasant aesthetic.
Commissioner Moore stated these were now three-story buildings as opposed to two story previously. She liked it and was concerned about the overall volume and that was where you get into the discussion about the setbacks.
Mr. Schwartz stated they were always three-story.
Commissioner Weil stated she was impressed with the plan and a lot of changes were made reflecting comments. She liked how it looks and she agreed about the setback issue. She liked the fence but thought it looked cold. She asked if there could be plantings or would it be all concrete up to the door.
Mr. Schwartz stated this is very preliminary and they want to show the buildings. There is a whole landscape process to go through and it will be landscaped nicely.
Commissioner Weil stated that would make a huge difference.
Commissioner Lidawer stated she liked the project from the beginning and liked it much better now. She thought the parklet made it a public benefit to the renters so it would be its own little community. She liked that they were not breaking up the streetscape on Bloom and liked the entrance on Waukegan because it is the more commercial area. She stated they went from 24 to 22 units.
Mr. Schwartz stated it was always 22.
Commissioner Lidawer stated she liked the open courtyard. They have specifications for affordable housing and many times the developer comes with payment in lieu so they do not have to have the additional units. She liked that there had been no discussion of this and the developer seeks to put in these townhomes and to have the exact number they require for affordable housing. To her this was more important than the setback on Waukegan because it is more of a commercial street than Bloom and she thought the community will be inside and not outside. She loved the changes that had been made.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther thanked the applicant for making the changes. He thought it would help to show the context of the buildings around it when it deals with the setback. He agreed with Commissioner Lidawer that the setback on Waukegan does not bother him because he viewed it as more commercial. There is such a thing as average block face and you look at the entire block and you could not be in front of the average without a variance. Understanding the other setbacks of the residences on Bloom might help them make their case a little better as to what the setback should actually be. He thought the public benefit was too little and had little value. He thought the interior space is a benefit but it is a benefit to the renters not to the public. The idea of public benefit is to provide something of benefit to the entire community. He stated there needs to be work on that. He was concerned about the materials and wanted to see samples. He liked the architecture and if it is all cement board, then that is not what he would be looking for. He thought they needed some masonry and the brown gabled elements are an opportunity to have those as masonry and maybe some kind of paneling. If they are trying to match the architecture on Bloom they may want look at a more traditional siding than something flat. If they want to see how it could be done they could look at the development at Hyacinth and Western which is an all affordable which was built 15 years ago. There are masonry elements and cement board material which complements it. He was not wild about the fences and was torn about it because Waukegan is more commercial. How they handle that is important and maybe they could soften it with landscaping. They need to come back with a full landscape plan. He stated it could be softened up. They might consider the stormwater management and permeable pavers vs. hardscape in the driveways and some others areas. If they are reducing the amount of discharge that could be a public benefit. He appreciated the additional guest parking on site and moving the entrance to Waukegan was the right call. He was concerned maybe it is too close to the intersection which tends to be difficult because cars coming under the viaduct do no stop and there is no stop sign. He suggested they work with their engineering team so it is properly placed. He stated it is important to meet with the neighbors.
Planner Cross stated staff has spoken with Mr. Schwartz about this and he indicated he was willing to do that.
Director Fontane asked about the depth and width of the garages and the flex room. He stated there were no basements.
Mr. Schwartz stated it is flexible and you step up into a landing and then the living space. It could be a home office or bath.
Director Fontane stated without a basement some area will need to be used for storage or closets. He asked the depth of the garage.
Mr. Schwartz stated it is 20’ x 20’.
Director Fontane stated it was important to accommodate vehicles of today’s size. They are not large homes and they want to make sure the car spaces are of reasonable size.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther raised a question about garbage can storage.
Mr. Schwartz stated they could get another couple feet of depth in there. Director Fontane stated storage of garbage cans was a good point.
Vice Chair Hainsfurther thanked the applicant and stated they looked forward to seeing them in the future.
Mr. Schwartz stated they will have a full presentation next time and will meet with the neighbors.
V. OTHER BUSINESS
A. Discussion Items - None
B. Next Regular Meeting – January 19, 2021
Planner Cross stated the only item on the agenda is the continuation of the PUD Amendment at 2789 Oak Street.
Director Fontane asked the new commissioners to review video and minutes from the December 15th meeting and he wanted to make sure they were informed.
C. Case Briefing - None
VI. BUSINESS FROM THE PUBLIC - None
VII. ADJOURNMENT
Vice Chair Hainsfurther entertained a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Lidawer so motioned, seconded by Commissioner Weil.
Director Fontane called the roll:
Ayes: Weil, Marcus, Moore, Lidawer, Hainsfurther
Nays: None
Motion passed 5-0.
The Plan and Design Commission adjourned at 8:55 PM.
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