Carpentersville welcomes upscale homes

Luxury homes at luxurious prices could soon be added to Carpentersville's diverse housing stock.

The village board on Tuesday voted 4-2 in favor of an annexation agreement to bring eight custom-built homes in a gated community on a 5.41 acre site west of Sleepy Hollow Road in unincorporated Kane County into Carpentersville's zip code.

Trustees Paul Humpfer and Keith Hinz cited density issues in casting no votes. Trustee Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski was absent.

The village board will next take action to annex the property at its Aug. 5 board meeting.

The development, dubbed Lake Lodge, would offer luxury homes worth at least $700,000 along a private drive with lake access, said Carrie Koenig, managing director of East Dundee-based Lodge LLC.

"This is a very unique, one-of-a-kind subdivision that could do a lot for Carpentersville," said Koenig, who owns the property along with former Chicago Bears wide receiver Marcus Robinson. "It would give the village a new edge, something it has not been able to offer."

Each of the homes would have access to the small lake adjacent to the property, though only four of the homes would be lakefront properties, Koenig said. Two others would have lake views, while another two would have lake access alone, Koenig said. A homeowner's association would maintain the subdivision.

Village President Bill Sarto said the development would offer housing options not currently available in Carpentersville.

"There is always a need for upper-middle class types of housing," Sarto said. "The fact that they are targeting empty-nesters means there wouldn't be an impact on the schools but the village would benefit from the tax base."

But the estimated size of the lots, which would range from about one-quarter to one-third of an acre, are too small to accommodate a luxury home, Humpfer said.

"Putting $700,000 homes on a third of an acre does create a density issue," Humpfer said. "If there were going to be five or six homes on the property I probably wouldn't feel so strongly about it."

If trustees approve the annexation at its next board meeting, Koenig said the developer could begin infrastructure improvements by September with ground breaking on homes before the end of the year.