Elmhurst gives early OK to plans for 5 regions
Planning documents to update visions for five areas of Elmhurst took a step toward approval Monday when they got a unanimous nod from all 14 members of the city council.
The documents, called subarea plans, have been in the works since early 2017 and could receive final approval during the council's next meeting Dec. 17, City Manager James Grabowski said.
During the council's first review as a full panel, aldermen commenting on the subarea plans called them a useful addition to the city's 2009 comprehensive plan.
"I think that these set a nice vision for these subareas of the city," Alderman Noel Talluto said.
The subarea plans, developed by consultant Houseal Lavigne Associates under a $74,500 contract, affect the business district at York and Vallette streets, the Lake Street corridor between Route 83 and York Street, a one-block area at First and York streets downtown, several blocks along Butterfield Road west of York Street, and the intersection of North Avenue and Route 83, which is among the top five busiest intersections for vehicular traffic in Illinois.
Aldermen gave preliminary approval to four of the five plans as originally drafted, but the plan for the Butterfield Road and York Street area recently was amended to call for "coordinated redevelopment" and ease the fears of unincorporated residents near Elmhurst Hospital, who brought forward worries about piecemeal purchases and sporadic annexations.
The plan for the area still suggests potential redevelopment to include multifamily housing, such as assisted living, more bicycle and pedestrian connections and better integration of the land to the north of the hospital with the hospital property itself.
"The manner in which those uses would get to the area - that's what we're trying to clarify," said Nik Davis, a principal with Houseal Lavigne Associates. "I think the previous draft wasn't clear enough."
Davis said the plan now includes more description of how redevelopment could occur should an interested company come forward, including assurances that it must come with studies of traffic, stormwater, finances and schools. The plan suggests any changes in the area be made as part of a comprehensive strategy that will encourage consolidation of parcels where houses on half-acre lots in the West Yorkfield subdivision now lie.
That satisfied neighbors, represented by West Yorkfield resident Dan Cusack, and aldermen such as Michael Bram, who wanted to know before the preliminary vote what had been updated about the plan for the area at Butterfield and York.
Other highlights of the subarea plans include sketches to show what could happen if property owners coordinate downtown at First and York; ideas to improve walkability along Lake Street; proposals to improve safety and add new uses at North Avenue and Route 83; and strategies to better tie in the York and Vallette business district to the Illinois Prairie Path.
"I'm very supportive of this plan," Alderman Bob Dunn said. "I think it's very exciting."
If approved, Grabowski said the subarea plans will be added to the city's 2009 comprehensive plan. Talluto said they will serve as a guide, not as must-dos set in stone.
"We're just trying to visualize," Davis said, "what could happen in these areas in the future."