Townhouse plan advances in Barrington
Barrington's advisory plan commission has given a thumbs-up to a revised proposal for townhouses off Dundee Road just east of the Motor Werks automobile dealership.
Commissioners at a meeting Tuesday night voted 3-2 in favor of M/I Homes' new plan for 61 townhouses on 11 acres previously used for "country offices" at The Grove. M/I originally had pitched 65 homes for the site.
If built, the multifamily development would be at the northeast corner of Dundee and Grove Avenue between Motor Werks and Barrington Middle School-Prairie Campus. Two small parks would be part of the tentatively named Brentwood subdivision.
Plan commission members voted on the townhouse proposal in the second continuation of a public hearing that began June 13.
Commission member Daniel Hogan, who voted in favor, said he understood residents' concerns, which included the number of homes planned and additional traffic near a difficult Grove-Dundee intersection that doesn't have a signal.
"There is a view that there is a need for maintenance-free housing and there's a need for diversity of housing," Hogan said, "and that this is something that's appropriate."
Chairwoman Anna Bush also said Barrington needs to provide options beyond single-family homes, However, she voted against the plan after M/I executive Greg Collins declined to lower the number of homes from 61.
About 50 residents against the project attended Tuesday's plan commission session. Among them was Dick Kuhn, who lives in the Park Barrington subdivision north of where M/I would build the townhouses.
"I don't want it to look like tenement housing all crammed in," Kuhn said. "We've got to have something that looks like Barrington, I think, that we can be proud of."
Barrington village board trustees, who get the final say on issues, will receive the plan commission's recommendation. Jennifer Tennant, the village's assistant director of development services, said a final board vote is expected Sept. 11.
Collins said the townhouses would provide a greater and more affordable housing choice in Barrington, likely appealing to older "move-down" buyers and young professionals. With a base price in the $400,000s, the units would have two or three bedrooms, a two-car garage and a full basement, covering 1,584 to 2,231 square feet.
Plan commission members attached conditions to their positive recommendation for M/I Homes' proposal, including three-bedroom homes not exceeding 50 percent of the total number and a requirement on condominium covenants capping the number of potential rentals at 10 percent.