City of Countryside Plan Commission Zoning Board of Appeals met May 2
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
Meeting called to order at 7:15 p.m. by Chairman Schwarz
Roll Call: Secretary Grotzke called the Roll of Members physically present:
Present: Chairman Robert Schwarz, Ronald Ward, Steve Kehr, Tina Grotzke, Danielle Edenfield, Bryan White, Tom Geraghty, Marco Gutierrez,
Absent: Jonathan Gertsmeier
Also Present: Attorney Erik Peck, Planning Manager Richard Trent
Approval of Minutes -- The Regular Meeting Minutes of April 11, 2023 were previously distributed to Board Members. There being no corrections or additions to the minutes, motion made to approve the minutes as presented.
A motion was made by Mr. Ward, seconded by Mr. White that this matter be APPROVED as presented. The motion carried by the following vote:
Aye: 8 Schwarz, Ward, Grotzke, White, Kehr, Geraghty, Edenfield Gutierrez
Nay: 0
Absent: 1 Gertsmeier
Chairman’s Comments - None
Action Items
1. CASE #PPUD23-0001: Consideration of a Business PUD (Special Use) - POSTPONED
a. To consider approving a Special Use for a Planned Unit Development (PUD) in order to establish a business development of commercial uses (Automobile service station and drive-through facility) in the B-2 Zoning District; and
b. To consider approving a Preliminary/Final Development Plan for a Planned Unit Development (PUD) in order to establish a business development of commercial uses (automobile service station and drive-through facility) in the B-2 Zoning District at the subject property of 6201 Joliet Road.
Ms. Grotzke moved to open the Public Hearing in this matter, seconded by Mr. Ward; motion carried by unanimous voice vote. Chairman Schwarz asked Mr. Trent if anyone is present representing the Petitioner; Mr. Trent stated that they are not in the audience at this time. Chairman Schwarz noted that at least twelve (12) residents of the community were present in the audience. He also noted that a letter was received by all Commission members dated Tuesday, May 2, 2023, written on Holiday Inn
Countryside letterhead directed to the members of the Planning and Zoning Commission formally requesting a postponement of their scheduled appearance before the PC/ZBA Commission in order to present an adjusted proposal to the committee. They respectfully request a postponement until August 1, 2023 at which time they would be prepared to present to the committee. The letter was signed by Kimberley Nosko, Senior Vice President, MP Hospitality for Holiday Inn
Chairman Schwarz stated that this hearing was continued for the purpose of providing the Petitioner additional time. The original appearance of this matter was January 3, 2023. At that time, the committee was requested to POSTPONE the hearing until February, and then a second request was made to POSTPONE until May 22, 2023. It has been four (4) months since the original appearance was scheduled before this committee. In January, there were several more residents in the audience; many of those audience members are present this evening. Mr. Trent received the letter (request for postponement) this afternoon and it was immediately posted to the City’s Website so that members of the community could be made aware of the possibility that the public hearing may be CONTINUED. Mr. Trent confirmed the above statements. He also stated that a copy of the letter was E-Blasted to those residents on record (through the Clerk’s Office) via Email. There is also a Facebook page known as “Countryside Connections” where people have communicated about this project; the letter was also posted to that page as well. The letter is being presented before the PC/ZBA for consideration.
Chairman Schwarz asked if there was any type of communication between the parties (prior to the meeting between the City & the Petitioner); Mr. Trent stated that communication occurred via an email exchange that took place between the Petitioner, Ms. Nosko and Mr. Bagasra, regarding the request. They initially just requested to postpone without any specific return date determined. Staff pressed further and stated they needed to provide a specific date to present the PC/ZBA for consideration. Mr. Trent encouraged the Petitioner to attend the meeting if they could in order to explain the need for a POSTPONEMENT – be able to explain what has changed to necessitate the POSTPONEMENT. Instead, a letter was submitted.
Chairman Schwarz asked Mr. Trent if he had prepared a staff report back in January 2023. He did not, however, there were discussions with the Petitioners about the project, encouraging them to seek different/alternative uses, as opposed to what has been presented. Staff and Administration encouraged them to take some time to think about other options – reevaluate their proposal and return with new plans and/or alternatives. The recommendation was considered but they decided to move forward with what they had until this afternoon when they requested the POSTPONEMENT.
Chairman Schwarz asked Mr. Trent if he was aware of any Code Violations with regard to the property as it currently stands. Staff was not only aware outstanding citations but complaint letters issued as well -- some of the complaints have been addressed, others are still open. Chairman Schwarz noted in the Staff Memorandum (dated May 2, 2023) that there is an extensive list of violations, many of which pre-date the January 2023 hearing and some of those violations are still open. Mr. Trent agreed. Chairman Schwarz stated that since the January POSTPONEMENT there have been additional violations noted, Building Code violations from March 2023, and those violations also appear to be open. Lastly, other than the letter received, has the Petitioner offered any explanation with regard to why the need for an additional three (3) months to bring this matter back before the PC/ZBA. Staff can only speculate; Mr. Trent believes they may be rethinking the proposed uses, particularly the truck and automobile fueling stations, but he is not certain. The Petitioners had mentioned that and thought that might change the outcome of their request.
Chairman Schwarz stated if a change of that magnitude were to be presented, Staff would need to prepare an additional report at that point since circumstances may change and the request for a PUD may longer be needed; it may just be Special Use or some other permitting review; is that correct? Mr. Trent stated that any new uses and/or elimination of uses may change the scope of the entire project – if they downsize their proposal and look at minimal uses, Staff might suggest a different approach to submitting requests – such as, if they only sought a “drive-through facility”, that may only need a Special Use permit for that particular use as opposed to a PUD with multiple uses being proposed. Staff had suggested that route in the beginning because the Petitioners were suggesting a number of uses on top of what they are currently operating on site, which is a hotel, banquet facility, a restaurant (Jameson’s Charhouse), large pool, and meeting rooms – those uses combined with what they are already proposing – Staff believed that it was best for the Petitioners to go the PUD route. If they down-size and eliminate some uses, the request may be considered differently.
Chairman Schwarz asked if any member of the PC/ZBA had any questions for Mr. Trent with regard to whether or not this hearing should be CONTINUED or go forward this evening. Mr. White asked if the Commission were to proceed this evening and recommend not to approve the request, could the Petitioners begin the process over. Mr. Trent stated yes. The Plan Commission would make a recommendation to the City Council; if City Council concurs with the recommendation, then the request would be ended. In that case, Mr. Peck stated that the Petitioner can only resubmit the project after one (1) year from the date of the order.
Chairman Schwarz asked if there is a motion for this Hearing to go forward, as the Petitioner had requested. Ms. Edenfield asked if audience questions could be entertained prior to voting on this matter. People have shown up; she wonders what comments and/or concerns would like to be shared, before a final determination is made. Chairman Schwarz believes the PC/ZBA can ask the public present to speak since they have made the effort to get here, however did indicate that any comments and/or concerns received should be in response to whether or not the hearing should go forward or not.
Mr. Trent stated that a letter was received re: the subject case submitted by Ms. Mary Slovick, 6124 S. Kensington Avenue, opposing the project as requested. A copy of the letter and attachments have been provided to the PC/ZBA for review. The entire document will be entered into the record. Chairman Schwarz accepted the document into the record. All speakers were sworn in by Chairman Schwarz prior to making their remarks.
Daniel J. Herbst, 105 Quail Drive – sought clarification only – explained by Chairman Schwarz. Diane Kiolbasa, 115 Pheasant Drive – absolutely not. Solidify plans and resubmit. Bob Bruscato, 108 Meadow Drive – reject proposal and let them resubmit.
Kenneth Novak, 103 W. Constance Avenue – no continuance.
Mr. Geraghty moved to proceed with the Hearing, seconded by Ms. Edenfield; motion carried by unanimous voice vote. The Public Hearing will proceed. Mr. Trent presented the Staff report and a brief overview of the project as proposed by the Petitioner.
PM Mr. Trent stated this is a Special Use request for a PUD in order to establish a Planned Business Development – uses to include an automobile service station – fueling station – not a repair facility – and a drive-through facility on the property commonly known as 6201 Joliet Road, a/k/a Holiday Inn Countryside. The property is located north of Joliet Road, east of Kensington, west of LaGrange Road, and south of Jovic Court. Mostly commercial uses are situated along Joliet Road. The two (2) proposed uses are fueling stations (for both truck and auto) and a drive-through facility (creating a mini-mart – “New Mart” with a restaurant). Mr. Trent reviewed the list of amenities already offered by the Petitioner. Photos of the north, south, east and west elevations were shown. The west elevation photo shows parked trucks and rigs on the property as well as on some parts of the Best Western property. To Staff’s knowledge, there is no reciprocal parking agreement on record. The photos provided were taken within the last week.
The subject property is approximately 391,186 square feet (+/- 8.98 acres) in size. The bulk of what is being requested is in the middle of the property along the southwest corner. There is a vacant building (the west tower) at the rear of the property – vacant for years. Petitioners have no desire to incorporate the west tower into the project. The Site Plan shows Best Western (to the west) of the proposed activity; the remainder of the site (to the north and east) are all considered Holiday Inn buildings.
They are proposing three (3) truck fueling pumps with two access drives; the fueling station would be along Joliet Road and would provide one way in (right in), one way out (right out). The auto fueling stations would have eight (8) pumps directly outside the proposed “New Mart”, approximately 4,400 square feet in size, that would entail a convenience mart, a potential restaurant, and a drive-through facility that would be able to accommodate queueing for up to ten (10) vehicles. The area between the buildings (Holiday Inn & Best Western) is very tight, approximately 28-30 feet – not much room for two way traffic and a drive-through facility. Trucks would be entering from the east drive and exiting the west drive; Petitioner would install signs directing drivers to make a right turn in and right turns out only. Currently, there is no turn lane on Joliet Road for those drivers looking to make a left turn in or a left turn out; it is four (4) lanes at that location. This would create a potential backup on Joliet Road as well as a potential backup of trucks and/or automobiles queueing on site.
The petitioner has provided no plans regarding the exterior of the proposed “New Mart” facility; canopies would be approximately eighteen (18) feet high over both fueling locations. Landscape Plans were provided; on site challenges exist and they offered to put in landscaping along Joliet Road as well as install three (3) new landscape islands; not much maneuvering accessibility as proposed. No garbage enclosures are noted in the drawings; the AC units may need to be relocated. The current owners purchased the property sometime in 2014-2015. Renovations began in 2016-2017 at the Holiday Inn. A Photometric Plan was submitted indicating new lighting to be installed under the canopies. A Grading Plan was submitted and has been reviewed by the City Engineer who has provided comments regarding the preliminary drainage as well as the traffic impact study (dated December 2022).
The next slides are comments provided by the Building commissioner, Kevin Wagner, and the Fire Marshal, Art Peters with the Pleasantview Fire Protection District. The lists show items that are currently in violation and need to be corrected – there are building concerns that need to be updated. The Petitioner has indicated there is sufficient parking to handle the proposed usage. Staff stated that all the uses combined would require 654 parking spaces; the Site plan as presented shows 480 parking spaces – a difference of 174. The Petitioner has indicated that if they combined their parking stalls with those available at Best Western; the shared use of stalls combined would be 620 spaces. Based on the information provided and the proposed additional uses (as presented), Staff is recommending DENIAL for this project.
Chairman Schwarz discussed total parking spaces with both properties combined. Ms. Grotzke asked about the 24/7 aspect of the fueling stations and mini-mart. Mr. Trent is not sure of the proposed operating hours. These plans have been in the works since July of 2021. There were no further questions from Board members.
Chairman Schwarz asked for comments from interested parties: Bob Bruscato, 108 Meadow Drive – lives in Countryside Meadows, engineering background. There are no hours of operation mentioned; traffic is the major concern; noise of 24-hour operation would be unbearable. He is opposed to the entire project.
Ken Novak, 103 W. Constance Avenue – he could walk to the Best Western lot; he is very close; he enjoys his quiet atmosphere; the noise this would create would be horrendous; he asked that the project be rejected.
Diane Kiolbasa, 115 Pheasant Drive – neighbors have all made good points. She believes gambling might be involved in the proposal; they are not specific on plans; traffic is the nightmare; noise is a major factor; she rejects the project.
Helen Kasic, 6124 S. Kensington – resident in Kensington Arms for 25-30 years, real estate background; this project brings up many red flags; as a home owner, the traffic, noise and pollution are the problems; she echoes former speakers’ remarks and is adamantly opposed to this project.
Gonzalo Valdez, 107 Pheasant – stated that trucks park behind the hotel all night long; they hear refrigeration units running; they can’t have their windows open; they have witnessed drug use and public sex taking place during the night behind the hotel; he is definitely opposed to this project.
Mr. Trent stated there should be no parking behind the hotels; anyone witnessing that type of activity occurring should immediately call the police department; Staff stated that all parking associated with hotels is to be done in front or along Joliet Road; please report any of these types of activities to the Police Department. New language was added to the Code (in 2021) addressing truck idling – prohibited unless the idling is occurring in a designated loading/unloading zone; please call the police; violators will be cited.
Motion of Mr. Ward to close the Public Hearing, seconded by Mr. Kehr; motion carried by unanimous voice vote. Chairman Schwarz made several comments regarding the inappropriateness of this project at this location. Mr. Trent stated there are currently nine (9) complaint letters open; 3 or 4 of them are citations that need to be addressed.
Mr. White moved, Ms. Edenfield seconded, to DENY APPROVAL for a Special Use for a Planned Unit Development (PUD) in order to establish a business development of commercial uses (automobile service station and drive-through facility) in the B-2 Zoning District; for the request of a Business PUD; carried by unanimous Roll Call vote.
A motion was made by Mr. White, seconded by Ms. Edenfield that this matter be DENIED as presented. The motion carried by the following vote:
Aye: 8 Schwarz, Ward, Grotzke, White, Kehr, Geraghty, Edenfield Gutierrez
Nay: 0
Absent: 1 Gertsmeier
Mr. Ward moved, seconded by Ms. Grotzke, to DENY APPROVAL for a Preliminary/Final Development Plan for a Planned Unit Development (PUD) in order to establish a business development of commercial uses (automobile service station and drive-through facility) in the B-2 Zoning District at the subject property of 6201 Joliet Road.
A motion was made by Mr. Ward, seconded by Ms. Grotzke that this matter be DENIED as presented. The motion carried by the following vote:
Aye: 8 Schwarz, Ward, Grotzke, White, Kehr, Geraghty, Edenfield Gutierrez
Nay: 0
Absent: 1 Gertsmeier
Chairman Schwarz stated that this matter will come before the City Council at its next Regular Meeting on May 24, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. He thanked the residents for appearing tonight.
(Whereupon a brief recess was had.)
Public Comments - None
Other Business
Comprehensive Plan Update - STATUS
Mr. Trent has nothing new to report. The consultant is still working on gathering all documents, comments, and plans. The City should receive preliminary deliverables in the next few weeks; there will be additional Steering Committee meetings held in June prior to a community-wide meeting after that time.
Mr. Trent discussed Ticket Tickets (for April 2023) – There was a request for specific locations of these tickets. This is a new system in the Police Department which does not allow the program to easily filter those locations so for the time being, that information will not be available. In April - 6 tickets were issued in total - 0 issued for idling trucks prohibited; 5 issued for parking/storing tractor-trailers; 1 issued for commercial vehicle at a residence; and 0 issued for not registered to a business
The Woodmont Company, 1023 W. 55th Street, Kiddie Academy, came before the PC/ZBA last year to request a variance for signage; requested an extension (expired March 25, 2023), no response to date. The entire project has been challenging. They have very few people consistently working on this large project – +/-19,000 square feet. The Woodmont Company purchased the property in 2021. The project is slow moving; their variance has officially expired and they made the request for a four (4) month extension.
The Zoning Case Log from 2018-2023 is included in the Board packets and updated monthly. This is a tracking document for Staff and for PC/ZBA members
Upcoming Cases
There is no item on the agenda but there may be a potential Variance matter to be submitted soon.
The proposed Former City Hall project (on East Avenue/55th Street) received an extension for an additional year and a half (Special Use portion). Property negotiations are still taking place.
The bowling alley/restaurant was sold with many code compliance issues; it went through City inspections and code compliance issues were noted. Whether those things have been corrected is unknown at this time; if not corrected, the new buyer can post a refundable bond to insure that those corrections are made; if they are still not made, the bond is forfeited.
The next PC/ZBA Meeting is scheduled for June 6, 2023 at 7:15 p.m.
ADJOURNMENT:
A motion was made by Mr. Gutierrez, seconded by Mr. Geraghty, that this Hearing be ADJOURNED. The motion carried by the following vote:
Aye: 8 Schwarz, Ward, Grotzke, White, Kehr, Geraghty, Edenfield Gutierrez
Nay: 0
Absent: 1 Gertsmeier
Chairman Schwarz declared the meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m.
https://www.countryside-il.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/05-02-23-PCZBA-Minutes.pdf
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