TOWN OF NORMAL PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2010, 5:00 P.M. REGULAR MEETING, CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS 100 E. PHOENIX AVE. NORMAL, IL

Members Physically Present:

Mr. Boser, Mr. Feid, Ms. Hutchison (left at 6:05 p.m.), Mr. Bradley, Ms. Lorenz and Mr. McFarland

Members Absent:

Mr. McBride

Others Present:

Mr. Mahrt, Corporation Counsel, Ms. Davison, Town Planner, Mr. Troemel, Director of Inspections

Call to Order:

Chairman Boser called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. and noted that a quorum was present.

Approval of Minutes:

Mr. Feid moved, seconded by Ms. Lorenz, to approve minutes of the November 4, 2010, meeting with one correction – in the “Other Business” section there’s an incorrect reference to the “Bond Conference.” It was the statewide planning conference. Motion carried 6-0.

Public Hearings:

a. 10-12-14-PC: Amended Final Development Plan, Morgan Court PUD (711 Kingsley Street, #3)

Ms. Davison explained that the Morgan Court PUD has four . Originally, the PUD had 4 rooming , but two have been replaced with -style structures in recent years. Ms. Davison the summarized the plan to demolish the at the southwest corner of the PUD and replace it with an 8-unit apartment building with 32 residents. The current structure is a rooming licensed to house 44 people. The new building will not impact the current parking or parking lot lights. Staff recommends approval with conditions to screen the dumpster, to add a bike rack, and to improve the fence with staff approval.

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Mr. Feid asked about the impact on parking. Mr. Troemel summarized the code requirements for parking on the site, stating that parking meets current code. Mr. Feid asked if all owners within the PUD had signed off on the amendment to the Final Development Plan. Ms. Davison said that all owners had signed the form earlier in the week, and the form is on file with the Town Clerk.

Mr. Boser opened the public hearing.

Frank Miles, 202 N. Center, Bloomington, Illinois, testified as the attorney for the developer. Mr. Miles was the attorney when the PUD was originally developed, and he has seen housing trends change through the years. The current trend is away from rooming houses and toward apartment-style living. If this amendment to the PUD is approved, there will only be one left in the PUD where the original PUD had four.

There were no questions for Mr. Miles and the public hearing was closed.

Mr. Feid stated he is in favor of the amendment because it is an improvement over the current building.

Mr. Feid moved to approve the amendment to the Final Development Plan with the staff conditions. Ms. Hutchison seconded.

Ayes: Mr. Feid, Ms. Hutchison, Ms. Lorenz, Mr. McFarland, Mr. Bradley and Mr. Boser Nays: None Motion declared carried.

b. 10-12-15-PC: Site Plan, Apostolic Christian Church (North of Raab Rd. and West of Towanda Barnes Rd.)

c. 10-12-16-PC: Preliminary Development Plan, at Mercy Creek

d. 10-12-17-PC: Site Plan, meadows Mennonite Community

Mr. Boser stated his preference that Town staff explain all three projects taking place on the Apostolic Christian Church property, although all three are separate voting items.

Ms. Davison provided a summary. The property is approximately 102 acres at the northwest corner of Raab and Towanda-Barnes. The Apostolic Christian Church is located at the southwest corner of the site. In 2009 the Town approved an annexation agreement with the church to permit development of the site in a manner shown in a concept plan. The concept plan shows sections of attached single family housing, PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 3 DECEMBER 9, 2010

detached single family housing, a retirement community, an area of commercial development, and a cemetery. After approving the annexation agreement, the Town annexed and rezoned the property.

At this time the church has submitted three plans that Town staff finds to be in compliance with the approved concept plan. All of the projects are on the west side of Mercy Creek Boulevard. The projects are a cemetery, a cul-de-sac of attached (duplex) housing, and a retirement community.

The cemetery will have a gravel driveway throughout, although the connection to Mercy Creek Boulevard will be hard surface. A trail will be built throughout the site in addition to a on the north end.

The cul-de-sac will be developed as a PUD called the Villas at Mercy Creek. The plan includes 6 duplexes (12 units). In addition to attached garages at each unit, there will be several off-street parking spaces provided for visitors. The plan includes no sidewalks.

The retirement community, called the Meadows at Mercy Creek, will be phased. The first phase will include 50 residential units and the community center. The site will have two access points off Mercy Creek Boulevard.

Mr. Feid expressed concern with the cul-de-sac in the Villas at Mercy Creek being a public street. He asked if it was a change in Town philosophy. He said streets with substandard widths are typically private. He believes it is not a wise use of public resources to extend public services to this street.

Gene Brown, Town Engineer, stated that in recent years the Town has accepted such streets as public, citing the Vineyards as an example. Ms. Davison stated that the Town supports narrower streets in certain applications for the environmental benefit of less pavement.

Ms. Hutchison asked for clarification on the staff condition regarding trees in the Meadows report. Ms. Davison stated that the Community Design Standards have specific requirements for tree replacement. Although the required number of trees is present on the site, the parking lot must have at least 8 trees between it and Mercy Creek Boulevard. The developer can remedy this by simply rearranging the tree locations.

Ms. Lorenz asked if traffic will be an issue on Raab given traffic levels already present on Raab and Towanda Barnes. Mr. Brown said this development is not expected to generate enough traffic to have warranted a traffic impact study. He also noted that the intersection of Raab and Towanda Barnes will be improved in 2014-15 by the county, which will include signals. The improvement of Raab will depend on PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 4 DECEMBER 9, 2010

further development in the area. Ms. Davison noted that the improvement of the Raab and Towanda Barnes intersection will also trigger the need for the church to consolidate the current curb cuts on to Raab and eliminate the residential driveway on Towanda Barnes.

Ms. Lorenz asked if there is any plan to build a fire station on the east side to improve response times. Ms. Davison said the current 5-year budget does not include a new fire station.

Mr. Boser asked for a total number of residents expected in the overall development.

Mr. McFarland stated that he visited the cemetery on West College, where they have a paved driveway through the site. He said there was quite a bit of traffic, and he is concerned with the use of gravel at the Apostolic Christian cemetery. He believes appearance could be an issue and that gravel could be dusty and dirty. Ms. Davison said Town staff supports gravel for its environmental benefit of being permeable and because the cemetery traffic will be slow and infrequent.

Mr. McFarland also expressed concern about the narrow right-of-way and pavement width and lack of sidewalks within the Villas at Mercy Creek. He also asked if the narrow street would cause problems for fire trucks.

Mr. Brown said the cul-de-sac has no on-street parking and plenty of room for vehicles, including fire trucks, to maneuver. The lack of sidewalks is similar to the Evergreen Village PUD, where no sidewalks were required. The cul-de-sac is short and has very few residences, which should generate little traffic. The off-street parking spaces combined with the house setbacks would also make it difficult to build a sidewalk.

Mr. Boser asked where people will walk. Mr. Brown noted the sidewalk connections north and south and the sidewalk north of the houses heading east and west.

Mr. Boser opened the public hearing.

Frank Miles, 202 N. Center, testified as the attorney for the developer. Mr. Miles said that many of these issues are addressed in the approved annexation agreement. For example, the concept plan shows no sidewalks.

Ms. Hutchison asked about gravel in the cemetery. Mr. Miles said the church has not had a funeral in 2.5 years and anticipates only 4-5 burials per year for the foreseeable future. The church is right next door, and all of the burials will be for church members. Thus, the church will have a great interest in ensuring the cemetery and the driveways are well maintained.

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Mr. Boser asked how many residential units are in the overall development. Mr. Miles did not have a precise number but noted that the concept plan showed the number, and it has already been approved. Mr. Feid asked if the access easement issue with the Laesch family had been resolved. Mr. Miles believes it has been resolved. Ms. Davison noted that she sent notice of the public hearing to the Laesch family and has not heard from them.

Mr. Feid asked how the retirement community will build the second phase given that there is pavement proposed on the site of the next building footprint.

Duane Yockey (Lewis, Yockey, and Brown), 505 N. Main, testified as the project engineer. Mr. Yockey referred back to the cul-de-sac sidewalk issue and highlighted the sidewalk just north of the residences.

Chuck Fischer, 316 SW Washington Street, Peoria, testified as the architect for the Meadows project. He summarized the proposed site plan and said some of the pavement will be removed in phase 2.

Mr. Feid asked if the church has a plan for the gazebo and maintenance shed proposed at the cemetery. Mr. Yockey said both structures are not planned for the immediate future. The church has an agreement with the Laesch family to restrict some amount of on the south end of the cemetery. In the meantime, the maintenance equipment will be kept at the church.

Bill Dennick, church member, 1907 Woodfield Road, Bloomington, testified, noting that the church does not plan to build out the cemetery very quickly.

Ms. Hutchison moved to approve the cemetery site plan with staff conditions. Ms. Lorenz seconded. Mr. McFarland emphasized his disapproval of the gravel driveway although he likes the plan overall. The commissioners voted 4-2 in favor of the site plan, with Mr. Feid and Mr. McFarland voting in opposition.

Ms. Hutchison moved to approve the Villas at Mercy Creek Preliminary PUD with staff conditions. Mr. Bradley seconded. Mr. Feid emphasized his disapproval of the road being public because it is a huge waste of Town resources. The commissioners voted 6-0 in favor of the PUD.

Ms. Hutchison moved to approve the Meadows at Mercy Creek site plan with staff recommendations and conditions. Mr. McFarland seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

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e. 10-12-18-PC: Amended site Plan, Rogy’s Daycare Center (1106 S. Main St.)

Ms. Davison summarized the issue, noting that the built-out Rogy’s site does not match the approved site plan. In particular, the building was built closer to Main Street in a manner that left no green space, and the play area is artificial turf rather than living grass. Thus, the built site does not meet the 20% green space minimum required by the code. The site is also short one tree, and Rogy’s will have to pay the $300 fee-in-lieu. Ms. Hutchison expressed her serious concern that the building was built out of compliance with the approved plan. She does not want this to set a precedent. She also noted the lack of any green space along Main Street is unattractive.

Mr. Bradley agreed with Ms. Hutchison, stating the public process was completely subverted.

Mr. Feid said there was a complete disregard for the process, which he finds to be very frustrating.

Ms. Lorenz asked if there is any remedy.

Ms. Davison said it would be very costly to remodel the building in a manner that restored the proposed green space and original façade design. It would also be very costly to remove the artificial turf and replace it with real grass. She said some greenery could be added along Main Street, but it would be likely restricted to hanging baskets.

Mr. Troemel stated that Rogy’s itself did not flagrantly disregard the process. There was a significant lack of communication between all parties. When the contractor submitted final construction plans after the public process, those plans showed what was ultimately built. However, those plans did not get reviewed by the Town Planner, who never reviews construction plans. It is not uncommon for an architect or contractor to discover issues that force design changes after the public process, but it is almost never to this extreme. In this case, the architect learned after the public process that the building needed either a sprinkler system or multiple exits along the face of the building, which then triggered the need to add a large ramp along Main Street to make the exits accessible. The architect chose the latter alternative with the result that the green space was eliminated.

Ms. Hutchison asked if the person on staff who saw the ramp being added would think to question the impact on green space.

Mr. Boser opened the public hearing.

PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 7 DECEMBER 9, 2010

Dawn Meyer, 3522 W. Brook Road, Chillicothe, testified as the director of Rogy’s Daycare. She apologized for the way the building designs changed without Town approval. She simply assumed that the contractor was getting required approvals throughout the process.

Mr. Bradley asked why the daycare prefers artificial turf over real grass. Ms. Myer said real grass does not last and that when it gets muddy, the children cannot go out and play. She said Rogy’s never uses real grass on its sites. There are also DCFS requirements that the areas under play equipment have fall protection, which can be a material like rubber. The artificial turf on the site was provided to satisfy this requirement. Mr. Boser said that daycares have special needs and that the site looks great and is very functional.

Ms. Lorenz expressed her concern with setting a bad precedent, in which a developer can have one plan approved and build something very different. She asked about accountability.

Mr. McFarland asked if there is a potential solution to the procedural breakdown. Mr. Troemel stated that design changes of this magnitude are very unusual. Ms. Davison said it would be hard to design a process that addresses the situation; however, she did offer to send a letter summarizing the issues to the architect, general contractor, and landscaping professional in the hopes that this sort of issue could be avoided in the future.

Mr. Feid said this should not be necessary, as all professionals involved on this project are very familiar with code requirements and the public process.

Ms. Hutchison left at 6:05.

Mr. Bradley asked how projects get it right.

Mr. Troemel said one factor is issuing a foundation permit before the complete set of construction plans is complete.

Mr. Boser asked if trees could be planted in the parkway along Main Street. Ms. Davison said that area is under IDOT jurisdiction, and Rogy’s would have to get approval from IDOT. There are also overhead power lines, which would restrict tree selection.

Mr. McFarland moved to approve the staff recommendation with conditions. Mr. Feid seconded. Mr. Feid noted that he is not concerned with the aesthetics of the built project. He is simply frustrated at the subversion of the process. The motion failed 2- 3, with Mr. Feid, Ms. Lorenz, and Mr. Bradley voting in opposition. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 8 DECEMBER 9, 2010

Other Business:

None

Adjournment:

There being no further business, Mr. Bradley moved, seconded by Mr. McFarland, to adjourn the meeting at 6:35 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Mercy Davison Town Planner

Sheila Elgin Office Associate