Plan Commission Minutes 2004 06-23-04 Page 1 of 8
APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL 8/10/04
APPROVED BY PLAN COMMISSION 8/11/04
UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE
JOINT CITY COUNCIL AND PLAN COMMISSION MEETING
YORKVILLE CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
JUNE 23, 2004
Chairman Tom Lindblom called the meeting to order at 7 p.m.
ROLL CALL
City Council—Rose Spears, Paul James, Valerie Burd, Larry Kot, Wanda Ohare, and
Mayor Art Prochaska.
Plan Commission— Sandra Adams, Jack Jones, Tom Lindblom, Anne Lucietto, and Brian
Schillinger.
VISITORS
City Administrator Tony Graff; City Planner Mike Schoppe; Mark Baker; John
Whitehouse, Engineering Enterprises, Inc.; Lynn Dubajic, YEDC; Tony Scott, Record
Newspapers; Dan Waitt, Beacon News; Wendy Yaksich, Moser Enterprises; and Roxann
Sega.
PRESENTATION
City Planner Mike Schoppe gave a presentation on a comprehensive plan update looking
at the southern portion of the comprehensive plan.
Schoppe said he met with the city council several times to get an idea of what the council
wants to do in this area. He said the plan commission had not yet heard what his firm has
been charged to do.
His firm is working with SEC Planning Consultants to come up with some land use
recommendations for the area. However, first Schoppe said it was important to get some
thoughts and direction from the city council and plan commission.
Schoppe said there is a series of seven tasks that need to be completed in the project:
1. Collect data. Shoppe said they are in that process now.
2. Hold a planning workshop. Shoppe said it is important to get input from the city
council and plan commission outside of this meeting.
3. Develop a draft land use plan.
4. Hold a plan commission and city council workshop. Shoppe said it would be
important also to get community input at this time.
5. Create a revised draft plan.
6. Get a recommendation from the plan commission.
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7. Get city council approval.
Schoppe said it's important in this project to come up with some types of land use
definitions for the southern area not currently located in the city limits.
As part of the process, he said they'd use some existing plans such as the school site
study, the Prairie Parkway plan and the bike plan. Also, Schoppe said input from the city
council and plan commission is critical in giving direction.
Another issue to consider is the encroachment of Joliet into the southeast portion of the
Yorkville planning area. Schoppe said the City of Joliet has a draft plan that shows
residential development at the corner of Brisbane and Walker.
Overall, Schoppe said he has a good handle of what's coming toward Yorkville from the
east. For instance,the Morris plan stops six or seven miles south of the Yorkville study
area.
Mark Baker with SEC Planning said his firm works in the private and public sectors. In
the private sector, his firm has worked on some large-scale master plan communities.
He said he hopes he can bring ideas to city officials and they plan for the future. He said
he wants to help the city come up with a plan that fits Yorkville. Baker said he wouldn't
come up with a plan without first hearing what the visions are of city officials.
As a starting point, he said they've outlined some main points as to what some goals and
objectives should be. Some of those points include open space, land use trends and land
preservation.
Alderman Larry Kot said he has always envisioned the southern end of the city to have a
lower density to offset the higher density planned in the northern side. He added he'd
like to see some special zoning to preserve the agriculture aspects of the area.
Plan Commission Chairman Tom Lindblom said he agrees with Kot's vision but he
worries what might happen as Joliet approaches and changes the intended tone for the
area.
Kot said he'd rather see Yorkville set the tone and have Joliet meet that standard. Mayor
Art Prochaska said he agrees. He said Yorkville can set the tone.
As for keeping the agricultural flavor of the area, he said it is important to be creative
enough to keep that land valuable to the landowner. Prochaska said he's thought about
taking the southern area and creating some sort of a base density. Then looking at main
corridors such as Route 47, developers would have to buy development rights to the
southeast. That would set up a buffer of agricultural areas.
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Plan Commissioner Anne Lucietto said the city would need to be careful to make the plan
attractive to farmers. Most farmers don't want to keep working with large residential
areas around them. Mayor Prochaska said he agrees that it can't be a 100-acre farm
surrounded by residential areas. He said the area would need to encompass 1,000 acres or
more.
Going back to the original objective of the comment, Schoppe asked if those in
attendance were interested in seeing an open space corridor to separate the city from its
neighbors to the southeast. Plan Commissioner Brian Schillinger said he thinks it's more
economically driven. If the growth continues as it has been,how can the city plan for it?
He said the issue isn't whether the city preserves open space or farmland. The issue is
that the city needs to make itself distinct. How the city goes about making that distinction
is up for consideration. It could be done with roads, landscapes, roads, signage or lights,
Schillinger said. Lot sizes have generally been 12,000 square feet,but it is time to go
beyond that?
He said he would rather pay more in property taxes and live in a nicer area than have
lower taxes and live in a more populated area.
Plan Commissioner Jack Jones said as the city prepares to quadruple in size,he fears it
will lose its identity. He said he's like to see the city maintain a distinction.
Shoppe said it seems clear the city wants to maintain a distinction and how to go about
that can be determined later.
Alderman Paul James asked if the city has to give up density in order to get more open
space? Mayor Prochaska said the density is based on the comprehensive plan. There are
areas in the plan that allow for greater densities. He said he hears a lot about city taxes. If
the city only approves low-density developments, then taxes will be higher,he said.
Going back to the issue of identity,Alderwoman Valerie Burd said she was on the Prairie
Parkway Advisory Committee. One of the objectives of the committee is to try to control
growth along the proposed parkway. She suggested it should be a goal in the city to have
large setbacks along some of the major highways and roadways to give the appearance of
open space. She said she'd also like to see the city have open spaces between its
commercial developments as well so that it's not all one big block.
Schoppe asked what the city would try to accomplish with larger setbacks. Burd said she
envisions a more country feel. She can imagine more flowers, some split rail fences and
other such amenities.
Schoppe said that's a perfect objective to have and that the details can be worked out.
Mayor Prochaska said if the city plans for more greenery along roadways and even in
medians, it will get away from an urban look.
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As for commercial development, Jones said he's in favor of it, but he wants it to be
tasteful. He said the city needs an architectural review board. Burd agreed, adding that
there also needs to be control on signs.
Baker said many of the objectives stated are right on target for setting an identity. He
once worked with a small community in Texas whose number one concern was
maintaining rural charm. It was a small,rural town expecting to grow to a community of
about 100,000. As part of the process, the community conducted a full-blown scenic
corridor study. Borrowing from that community's efforts, Baker said Yorkville could try
to identify the scenic routes coming into town. The city can then start designating
overlays, frontage requirements or design elements along those roadways.
Also Baker said as the city further develops, it can identify the types of design elements it
wants for the community. For instance,he said, larger businesses like McDonald's will
conform to design guidelines set up by cities, but those guidelines need to be in place first
and they need to be uniform.
Baker said he encourages the city council and the plan commission to continue to discuss
many of the items they've already discussed. They also need to discuss broader issues
such as land uses.
Mayor Prochaska said he'd like to find a way to limit traffic control signals on some of
the major roadways in town. As one way of limiting the signals,he said, the city could
reduce the number of entrances required on some subdivisions when possible. He said
he'd like to see if there's a way the city could require a temporary access on some
subdivisions until another development comes along.
With so many cuts onto roads,there's too much pavement and it takes away from the
country look,he said.
Schoppe said that preserving the country look has been aforementioned and wondered if
that was a consensus among those present. The city council and plan commission agreed
that is a look they'd like to preserve. If that is an objective, he said, that parlays into
many other things.
Lindblom said he'd like to see the country look maintained at the intersection of Routes
71 and 126.
Talking about scenic drives into town, Burd said VanEmmon and Fox roads are gorgeous
routes. Schoppe said they can definitely identify some scenic routes including High Point
Road, which overlooks the Fox River valley.
Plan Commissioner Bill Davis asked if the city could get input back from Schoppe and
Baker about how to designate certain areas as agricultural areas. He also asked if they've
seen it done successfully. Baker said the way he's seen it done is taxpayers do it. Schoppe
said that is probably the most common way. However, he said there are other ways to do
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it such as creating an open space corridor. He said that might not be as big as some
people want to see it.
Mayor Prochaska said he's suggesting that developers buy development rights that way
developers would help pay for some of the preservation. The issue,he said, is getting the
area big enough so that farmers can still farm.
City Administrator Tony Graff said there that will help buy farmland to conserve.
However,they generally like the acreage to be in the range of 3,000 to 4,000 acres.
Kendall County is too late to quality for any of those programs. Also, he said many
farmers aren't interested because they don't want government intrusion on their
operations.
Graff said the last trust group that came to the county said the county would have to
purchase 6,000 acres to preserve the ag community. They said the best way to preserve
the agricultural feel of the community is to work with the farm community and to come
up with some standards.
Graff said there has to be a balance of land use. One of the issues the city needs to
address is the balance of residential and commercial uses. Looking at the southern area,
how much commercial area is the city looking at?
Schillinger said that two years ago the city talked about density and how the commercial
area should be developed.Now,he said, it seems like the city is more concerned about
getting the rooftops here so we can get more commercial.
Mayor Prochaska said we're looking at those certain areas or corridors. He said those are
the ones that are difficult to accept because they're higher in density and that's the way
the planner 10 years ago said it would happen. That's why, he said,the city needs to have
a plan in place.
Alderwoman Wanda O'Hare said the idea of trying to preserve farmland is nice. But, she
said the farmer is not going to farm forever and once a farmer retires or passes on, what
would happen to the land set aside. It would sit there and fill with weeds.
She said the city can't tell farmers or landowners who to sell their property to whether it's
to the city or to a trust. What the city does need to do is watch the rooftops and try to
make the development that comes more attractive. Whether it's commercial or
residential, it needs to look appealing, she said.
On the issue of land use, Burd said she would hate to see a big shopping center on the
south side of the city. She said she'd like to make it a less dense area. Even though the
tax base would help, she said the quality of life is more important.
Alderwoman Rose Spears said she'd like to see 3-acre lots in the area zoned for horse
property. She suggested special equestrian zoning.
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Mayor Prochaska said that might be something to look at for areas where sewer service
wouldn't be available.
Lucietto said she'd like to see larger lots by the falls area. She also said that years ago,
the city plan was to put stores and commercial areas around intersections. She said the
city should go back to that to help create transitions.
As far as rooftops go, it'll increase commercial interest a little bit, Lucietto said. She
added that everyone is feeling a little tense as the big box developers come in.
Burd said she's bothered by the clustered developments that purport more open space.
Although there is open space, the living areas in those types of developments are more
closed in, she said.
John Whitehouse, with EEI, said some of the cookie-cutter development look can be
addressed with design standards.
Meanwhile, he said the value of farmland is already beyond the price for taxpayers to
purchase for open space. The city is seeing much larger developments of 600 to 1,000
acres, he said.
The only way to implement open space if the city can't purchase land is to work with
developers so they can make it work, he said.
Whitehouse added that in the southern area there are quite a few drainage areas. His
recommendation is to make corridors with significant widths in that area.
Lynn Dubajic with the YEDC said commercial developers are already showing interest in
the Caton Farm Road and Route 47 intersection. She said it would be important for
Yorkville to get to that intersection before the city of Joliet.
Schillinger asked how quickly Yorkville needs to move. Graff answered that the time
frame would probably be in 10-15 years.
Davis said the city can't be naive. He said the city will need to work out a boundary
agreement with Joliet and bait landowners to come to Yorkville.
Back to residential issues, Spears said she'd like to see the city increase its minimum lot
size requirements to 14,000 square feet. The city could then sometimes negotiate for
smaller lot sizes of 12,000 square feet.
She said she also would like to see some senior housing developments in the southern
area. Mayor Prochaska said the city has been trying to encourage it. However, senior
housing tends to deal more with tax credits and dollars.
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Also, he said when looking at how the city develops, only 15 percent of the land is
designated for commercial/industrial while about 85 percent is residential. Part of the
reason for that is the city has low density.
The city also needs to keep the Prairie Parkway in mind. It is still on the table,he said.
As for land use issues, he wanted to know if the city wants the whole southern area to be
residential. Or if the Prairie Parkway comes, is there a possibility for industrial uses or
manufacturing? he said.
Lindblom said as someone who lives on the southern side of town,he would like to see
services come to the area for those who live there.
Mayor Prochaska said he likes the idea of nodes or commercial areas rather than never-
ending commercial areas like on Randall Road. He said he likes the parkway look
whenever possible.
Schoppe asked the group if there are any residential or commercial developments that
they like. Jones said he likes the way Hudson, Ohio has been developed. O'Hare said she
likes Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and the way that community is designed. Burd
said she likes Town Square, a commercial development on Butterfield Road in Wheaton.
Mayor Prochaska said he likes Geneva Commons. Schoppe said malls like Fox Valley
Mall are passe. The new trend is lifestyle centers like Geneva Commons. Residential
developments mentioned were White Oak and Farm Colony.
Schillinger asked if there was any way to keep out cookie-cutter type developments or to
limit them. Schoppe said there are ways to do it without telling track builders they're not
welcome.
O'Hare said that as fast as development has occurred on the north side, it will come on
the south side. She said the city needs to move quickly to plan for it.
Schoppe asked if industrial uses would be welcomed. Davis said that if they Prairie
Parkway goes though, yes. If not,he'd like to see the area primarily residential. Burd
added that business parks would be an okay use.
Lindblom said he'd like to see an industrial/business park on Route 126.
Taking everything mentioned by the city council and plan commission into consideration,
Schoppe said he would try to develop a review draft in a month or two.
The meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m.
Minutes respectfully submitted by Dina Gipe
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