Revised apartment complex plans clear St. Charles Plan Commission
Although residents living adjacent to a proposed apartment building near the Fox River in St. Charles are happy the building has been scaled back, they continue to voice concerns the complex will create additional parking and traffic problems in their neighborhood.
"It is not the developer's responsibility to fix the parking situation that we currently have," Janet Foster, owner of Wilson Travel and Cruise, located near the project, said during a public hearing on the latest proposal at Tuesday's plan commission meeting. "It is the developer's responsibility though to furnish enough parking for that development. And I don't really believe that has been accomplished with this plan."
Matthew Rhead, who lives on South 6th Avenue, said he was concerned about the project's impact on traffic flow and safety in the neighborhood.
"What we are going to have, I think, is increased traffic flow through the neighborhood," Rhead said in addressing plan commissioners. "I think it's incumbent on the city that if this project is approved, that you make sure the safety of the citizens is not compromised."
Following the public hearing, plan commissioners unanimously recommended approval of the revised plans. St. Charles alderpersons will now review the plans.
A traffic impact study conducted by civil engineering firm BLA, Inc. on June 21 concluded that the proposed development is expected to have little impact on the road network. The city plans to do a study to determine parking needs downtown.
Newly revised plans for the River East Lofts project call for reducing the building from five stories to four stories. The project is proposed to be built at the southeast corner of Illinois and Riverside avenues on the site of the former St. Charles Chamber of Commerce building.
Previous plans had called for the building to be 59 feet, 8 inches tall. The zoning district for the area only allows for a maximum building height of 50 feet.
The current plans show the building would be a maximum of 50 feet tall, so the developer is no longer requesting a variance from the city. The apartments would be on the upper floors, while commercial and retail space would be on the first floor.
In addition, the number of units has been reduced from 43 to 42 and the unit mix has changed from 27 one-bedroom/16 two-bedroom units to 12 one-bedroom/30 two-bedroom units. Revised architectural plans have been submitted.
Other changes include reorientation of the building to follow Riverside Avenue, removal of the BMO ATM and increasing the number of parking spaces from 53 to 60 - 36 spaces in the private parking lot and 24 spaces along 2nd Ave.
Developer Curt Hurst and his son Conrad own Frontier Development, which has been involved in several projects in downtown St. Charles. Over the objections of neighboring residents, the St. Charles Plan Commission in April voted 5-3 to recommend approval of the previous plans for a five-story building.
"Thank you for listening to us and making the changes that you did," said plan commissioner Jeffrey Funke, who had voted against the previous plan along with Plan Commission Chairman Peter Vargulich and plan commissioner Karen Hibel. "You didn't have to come back. You were already approved. This is a great difference."