After chilly reception by Lake Zurich board, 52-townhouse plan to be tweaked
A vote on a plan to build 52 townhouses in 12 buildings between Old Rand and Buesching roads was pushed off for a month after several Lake Zurich trustees raised concerns about the project Monday.
Among the issues cited by leaders included worries about flooding, the number of units in the plan and the buildings' appearance.
Had the plan been put to a vote and rejected, developer OSK Capital Partners LLC of Highland Park would have had to wait two years to present the plan again without making significant changes. Since the board opted to delay the vote until its meeting on Nov. 7, the developer has some time to address the board's concerns.
"We put a lot of time and effort into this and a lot of money, and we don't want to abandon it," said Lawrence Friedman, an attorney for the developer. "Give us time to take these things into consideration and see what changes we can make."
Trustee Marc Spaccone said he thought the plan, which calls for three-story buildings, didn't suit the surrounding area.
The current zoning classification provides only for detached single-family homes on 40,000-square-foot lots. If the project were to be approved, the board would have to agree to reclassify the area.
The developer pitched the plan as a transition between the commercial zoning district to the north and the single-family houses to the south.
During a courtesy review in April, Lake Zurich Mayor Thomas Poynton said he thought the buildings did not look good. On Monday, Poynton said the fronts of the buildings looked better now than before, but not the backs.
"The back side to me is not very attractive, so I certainly wouldn't be buying one of those," Poynton said. "It's up to you guys to try to clean that up a little bit."
The developer will present the changes to the board on Nov. 7.