Consultant to update Mundelein's development plan
Mundelein officials on Monday hired a consultant to update the village's plan for future commercial and residential development.
Kimley-Horn, a planning and design engineering firm headquartered in North Carolina, will revamp the village's 2011 comprehensive plan, It will be paid $103,600 for the job.
The 2011 comprehensive plan envisioned long-term development possibilities for Mundelein. It anticipated development on the north and west sides of the village, redevelopment of the downtown and Diamond Lake areas, improvements to the south side commercial corridor and other changes - some of which have happened and some of which haven't.
Planning experts recommend updating comprehensive plans every five to seven years, depending on the amount of growth and development a community experiences, policy changes and other factors, Mundelein Community Development Director Amanda Orenchuk said in a memo to the village board.
Mundelein's plan needs an overhaul because of changes in commercial trends, the relatively low vacancy of industrial business sites in town, changes that have occurred in town since 2011 and other factors, Orenchuk said.
A team from Kimley-Horn will review the existing plan, collect new demographic and market data, establish a future vision and goals for the entire village and specific neighborhoods and prepare an updated comprehensive plan. The document will be reviewed by the village staff and officials and discussed at public meetings.
The process will take from 12 months to 18 months, Orenchuk said.
Before Monday's unanimous vote by the village board, Mayor Steve Lentz said he was excited about the project, especially the opportunity for public input.
"This is very, very good for us," Lentz said.