Despite concerns, Lions Chase retail development plans move forward to the village board
HUNTLEY — As previously reported, petitioner and owner of Lot 205 of the Fitzgerald Subdivision, Inder Virk, went before the Plan Commission on June 10, regarding plans to construct three multi-tenant commercial buildings on the southeast corner of Charles H. Sass Parkway and Main Street.
Building A, the westernmost building which will be located along Charles H. Sass Parkway, is presented as a 14,400-square-foot single-story building that is expected to hold up to four tenants. The building has been designed with dual frontages, as the building is primarily accessed through the east parking lot and backs to Charles H. Sass Parkway.
Buildings B and C are identical 10,500 single-story strip commercial buildings set to support up to five tenants each. These buildings are positioned on the south side of the site and open to the front parking area facing Main Street, according to the July 25 Village Board meeting agenda packet.
Since September 2022, when Virk first presented conceptual plans for the retail development project to the Village Board, residents of the nearby Lions Chase Subdivision have expressed various concerns extending from the location of the proposed development in proximity to the existing residences to expressing hesitations about traffic safety. Trustees agreed that some issues needed to be addressed with the initial plans. Before the June 10 Plan Commission meeting, the petitioner agreed to conduct a traffic study and implemented recommendations into the new site plans given to the petitioner from Huntley officials and the McHenry County Department of Transportation.
Additionally, the petitioner agreed to add landscaping buffers to block construction from the street frontage and residences. The buffer for Lions Chase Subdivision homeowners would also include the installation of a six-foot tall composite Trex privacy fence in place of the existing white farm rail fence. To further comply with recommendations from the Village Board, the petitioner also changed building designs, building lighting, and parking plans for Building A.
Despite the changes to the plans, four residents of the Lions Chase Subdivision, including the Estates of Lions Chase Homeowners Association president, testified and requested further information from the petitioner at the June 10 Plan Commission meeting.
Residents expressed hesitation regarding traffic safety, tenant selection, landscape buffering, ongoing landscape maintenance, management of delivery and refuse services, building façade aesthetics, outdoor events, light trespass, and privacy fencing. In addition to the concerns heard from residents, members of the Plan Commission were confused about the architecture of the buildings, which differed from the plans the Village Board reviewed back in 2022.
It was decided to continue the Plan Commission meeting to June 24 to allow the petitioner time to revise the building elevations to better match the conceptual plans reviewed by the Village Board. The petitioner subsequently revised the building elevations and got the Plan Commission’s approval to move their plans forward to the Village Board by a vote of five to zero.
As with all petitions approved by the Plan Commission, Virk must abide by some conditions that would also ease some of the concerns raised by residents and the village. The commission also recommended that Virk provide utilities and install facilities for an electric vehicle charging station within the parking lot. Virk must also establish restrictions for the retail center that prohibit overnight parking and limit the building occupants’ hours of operation.
At the upcoming Village Board meeting, trustees will have to decide if they approve of the petitioner’s final Planned Unit Development (PUD) plans and include necessary relief to accommodate the construction of the three speculative multi-tenant commercial buildings.
