North Aurora residents question proposal for housing on old golf course
A request to put 374 homes on the former Fox Valley Country Club off Route 25 drew more than 80 concerned North Aurora residents to a public hearing on the proposal Tuesday night.
They had questions and critical comments about stormwater drainage, landscaping buffers, and traffic for the Lincoln Valley on the Fox "age-targeted" subdivision.
They are particularly worried about the effect on the intersection of Route 25 (River Road) and Banbury Road, which meet at an odd angle that compromises sightlines for people turning off Banbury.
D.R. Horton/Cambridge Homes proposes to build single-family detached houses, duplexes and townhouses on the 102 acres at 2500 River Road.
The builder is asking the village for permission to subdivide the site, and to rezone it from R-1 single-family detached-house zoning to several designations that allow more units per acre, and attached housing.
Residents disputed the effect on traffic the development would have on Banbury, which runs north-south through a neighborhood east of the golf club before curving to meet Route 25. They said the traffic counts presented did not jibe with their experience, nor with traffic they themselves had counted.
"That intersection is horrible in the morning and horrible in the evening," resident Scott Parsons said.
The state transportation department says about 8,450 vehicles a day drive on Route 25 in that area.
In 2007, a 17-year-old girl died in a crash when she was turning off Banbury on to Route 25.
But since the development is being designed to attract adults 55 and older, it won't have the same traffic patterns as younger users, with fewer trips in and out of the subdivision during peak morning and evening traffic hours.
The City of Aurora owns the golf club, even though it is in the Village of North Aurora. The club closed in 2015.
As of 9:30 p.m., residents were still asking questions.
The plan commission will make a recommendation to the village board on the developer's request.