Crystal Lake downtown townhouses get nod, completing project on hold for 30-plus years

The Crystal Lake City Council has given the go-ahead to builders to finish a townhouse development in the downtown area that was put on hold for more than 30 years.

South Barrington-based developer Projades aims to build a 19-unit townhouse development on Petrick and Lesley lanes on about 21,000 square feet. The townhouses would sit along Grant Street between Woodstock and Brink streets.

The plan stems from the Pingry Place townhouses that were first approved in 1992. Fourteen townhouses were built, but the remainder never were. Now, Projades is looking to complete the second phase of townhouses, 34 years after it was first proposed, minus one townhouse from what was originally proposed.

The originally approved plan from 1992 didn’t expire and still is valid, City Planner Elizabeth Maxwell said.

Crystal Lake’s Planning and Zoning Commission gave a 6-1 recommendation for the project last month. The city council unanimously approved it on Tuesday.

Called Jade Station, the three-story townhouses are proposed to have three bedrooms, 2½ bathrooms and two-car garages with selling prices in the $400,000 range, Projades CEO and President Ram Prashantha said.

The new units aim to become a part of the existing Pingry Place Homeowners Association on that property.

City council approved for developers to remove triangular windows and faux chimneys from the design, which are featured in the first round of townhouses, for a more modern look.

The plan includes landscaped driveway dividers, which council member Ellen Brady said she would like to see removed because of the tedious maintenance they require.

“Because those are a nightmare to maintain,” she said. “Nothing grows in them; everything in them dies.”

Projades has two other projects in Crystal Lake: a townhouse development called Bard Estates at Bard and Huntley roads and a 93-unit apartment complex at 551 Exchange Drive.