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Comp Plan Steering Committee Minutes 2015 01-22-15Page 1 of 4 APPROVED 5/21/15 UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE COMP PLAN STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING Thursday, January 22, 2015 6:00pm Yorkville City Hall, Council Chambers 800 Game Farm Road In Attendance: Committee Members Joel Frieders, Alderman Amy Cesich, Park Board Bob Delo, Windett Ridge Homeowners' Association James Weaver, Plan Commission (arr. 6:25pm) Mary Shilkaitis, Rush Copley Hospital Tom Kozlowicz, Chamber of Commerce Reagan Goins, Zoning Board of Appeals Adalma Stevens, Resident City Officials Krysti Barksdale-Noble, Community Development Director Mr. Chris Heinen, City Planner Other Guests Nick Kalogeresis, Lakota Group Justin Weidl, Lakota Group Zach Lowe, Goodman Williams Group Jim Considine, T. Y. Lin Welcome The meeting began at 6:10pm and Nick Kalogeresis from The Lakota Group welcomed everyone. Lakota will be the prime consultant for the Comprehensive Plan Update with assistance from two other firms (listed below). He said the Steering Committee will help develop and create this update which should take 1.5 to 2 years. He presented a handout of the overview of the roles and responsibilities of the committee. Roll Call Roll call was taken. Citizen Comments None Page 2 of 4 New Business Introductions & Consultant Team Mr. Kalogeresis and Justin Weidl of the Lakota Group will be spearheading the update. Lakota is based out of Chicago and has been in business about 25 years. They have worked on many other comp plans and will be charged with updating the last Comp Plan done in 2008. They will be working on land use planning, streetscape and many other facets. The finished plan will be used as a tool in future decision-making. Jim Considine of the T.Y. Lin Co. has been a planner for about 38 years. T.Y. Lin is an engineering firm in business for 20 years. His focus will be transportation planning and collaborating on other projects with Lakota. Zach Lowe, Senior Consultant with the Goodman Williams Group will work on the market research/analysis and residential aspects of the plan. Linda Goodman will focus on the commercial and retail portion. Roles and Responsibilities Mr. Kalogeresis said the role of the committee members is to help develop the plan. Lakota has done interviews of stakeholders, data gathering and conducted workshops (including interactive presentations) and meetings to determine community desires. Project Schedule/Timeline Two major documents will be produced: 1) State of the City report regarding infrastructure, downtowns, subdivisions in about 4-5 months, 2) Comp Plan draft in about 8-10 months. Committee will meet 3-4 times during the process. A handout was given to illustrate the number of meetings/workshops and project schedule. The planning process was actually begun in September and many notes were taken. These notes will be shared with committee members when compiled. A speakout will be scheduled for February with smaller meetings planned later. Topics of discussion will be presented in the first workshop and plan concepts will be presented in the second one. In the second half of 2015, Lakota will begin the vision phase and hold another community meeting in the summer. In 2015-2016 the comp plan will be documented and then adopted by the City Council in 2016. The next meeting for the steering committee will be late March, then again in May, September and February 2016. Mr. Delo asked for a copy of the 2008 plan. Ms. Barksdale-Noble said it is available on-line and she will also send the link to all members. Ms. Shilkaitis asked about accomplishments of that original plan as a starting point. Lakota will compile a report with this information and Mr. Weidl added that the 2008 objectives will be audited with the community to determine if they have been accomplished or are still desired. Steering Committee Members The committee members then each introduced themselves and stated their background and interest in the community. Mr. Kalogeresis asked for emails from all as the way to communicate with the steering committee. Page 3 of 4 A postcard was included in the handouts to the committee. It contains a link to a website for a community survey. The committee was asked to complete the survey to provide demographic information. The link is: www.surveymonkey.com/s/theyorkvilleplan. The website is also live now and can be found on the City's website. Comments can also be posted. Issues and Opportunities Each committee member then shared their thoughts about the most pressing issues for the Comp Plan update: Bob Delo He and his wife live on the south side and own a property management company and manage Homeowners' Associations. One item frequently mentioned is the need for an alternative grocery store on the south side. He is pleased to see a movie theater and noted the many good restaurants downtown and on south side. The Rt. 47 improvement is a plus as well. Amy Cesich Ms. Cesich said she represents the Park Board on this committee. She has served on an HOA committee, County Board and has been very involved in local government. She also attends many city meetings. She wants to see the City move forward at an appropriate pace after the downturn of a few years ago. She agreed there are not a lot of businesses on the south side and during construction many people may have shopped in Oswego due to the difficulty of getting across the bridge. A second bridge across the river is vital for growth and there is a proposed bridge across Eldamain Road in the 2020 County plan. An effort is being made to use some of the Prairie Parkway funds for this project. (See also her comments regarding parks under Regan Goins). Adalma Stevens She feels an important mission is to maintain and safeguard property values using high standards during the resurgence of home-building. She wondered if standards would be diminished to attract builders. Ms. Barksdale-Noble said the City has Appearance Standards and briefly discussed past and current requirements. Ms. Stevens said Rt. 126 is the most beautiful of the City entrances and that entrances make an impression on visitors to the City. She also said that Elburn has done a good job of maintaining a small-town feel. James Weaver Mr. Weaver said transportation is a high priority for the community. He said Metra trains specifically would improve the area and encourage building. He said the schools did a great job on the expansion. Mr. Weaver said downtown attractions have to be set up beyond the Rt. 47 corridor because it's not conducive to walking in the downtown area. Tom Kozlowicz Mr. Kozlowicz said access to the I-88 corridor is a very important issue. He commended the schools for being great stewards of the tax dollar. Page 4 of 4 Joel Frieders Alderman Frieders cited four issues that he feels are important. 1) A secondary route across the river. Referring to a transportation map, Mr. Considine said that IDOT is currently working either on studies or construction. Metra is also doing planning to extend their lines and work will be done on Rt. 47 from Caton Farm Road to I-80. 2) Would like a more centrally located police station, expand city hall and move it to a main artery. 3) Future water needs. 4) Desire for vigorous business and residential growth in the area east of Menards and north of Blackstone Restaurant. Regarding downtown, Mr. Frieders said the east side of Rt. 47 should be torn down as it is visually unappealing during festivals. Mary Shilkaitis As an employee of the Rush Copley facility and YEDC, she feels it is important to be involved in the community planning for healthcare needs. Reagan Goins Ms. Goins would like to see more park space on the south side of town, improved park equipment and possibly a splash park. Development of the riverfront area is also desired. Ms. Cesich added that there is a plan for the riverfront to be completed by 2016 and that an OSLAD grant was also received. More development of Rush Copley is also desired. Regarding the downtown, she received a comment that the area is very unattractive and that person did not wish to visit downtown. Mr. Considine discussed the transportation map which originated in 2008 and the changes which have occurred. He commented that bike trails do not have good connectivity at this time and they are costly. Many communities now have biking on the streets. Along with the growth of the area, Ms. Cesich asked Mr. Considine to discuss water issues on the map. He said the aquifier is a State issue and that the last water study was done in the 1990's, however, planning is underway. A retail study is now being done on the south side of town. That study/plan will dovetail with the Comp Plan revision, said Ms. Barksdale-Noble. A summary of all existing plans and studies will be compiled and provided to the committee. In addition, Ms. Cesich volunteered to be Chairman of this committee. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 7:24pm. Minute respectfully submitted by Marlys Young, Minute Taker