Plan Commission

Village of Lombard Village Hall 255 East Wilson Ave. Lombard, IL 60148 villageoflombard.org Minutes Monday, August 18, 2025 7:00 PM Village Hall - Board Room Plan Commission Leigh Giuliano, Chairperson Commissioners: Ruth Sweetser, Bill Johnston, Alissa Verson, Robert Spreenberg and Brendan Flanigan Staff Liaison: Anna Papke Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 Call to Order Chairperson Giuliano called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m Pledge of Allegiance Chairperson Giuliano led the Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call of Members Present 5 - Ruth Sweetser, Leigh Giuliano, Bill Johnston, Alissa Verson, and Brendan Flanigan Absent 1 - Robert Spreenberg Also present: Anna Papke, AICP, Planning & Zoning Manager Community Development, and Lance Malina, Legal Counsel to the Plan Commission. Chairperson Giuliano called the order of the agenda. Ms. Papke read the Rules and Procedures as written by the Plan Commission. Public Hearings 250273 PC 25-12: Fairfield Court Townhomes The petitioner requests the Village take the following action on the subject property located within the R4 Limited General Residential District: Approve a variation to allow a front yard setback of 25 feet for an attached single-family dwelling (townhome), where a front yard setback of 30 feet is required pursuant to Section 155.409(F)(3)(a) of the Village Code of Ordinances. (DISTRICT #3) Sworn in to present the petition was Anna Papke, Planning and Zoning Manager, and Bob Gialo and Donna Gialo, petitioners. Chairperson Giuliano read the Plan Commission procedures and asked if anyone other than the petitioner intended to cross examine and, hearing none, she proceeded with the petition. Donna Gialo, representing Gialo Properties, presented the petition. Village of Lombard Page 1 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 The petitioner is requesting a variance to reduce the front setback for a townhome from 30 feet to 25 feet. The proposed front setback is larger than the 20-foot front setback of the other townhomes constructed on Fairfield Court in 1990. She said the proposed setback maintains the setbacks existing in the neighborhood. Ms. Gialo said the development will meet all stormwater requirements. In summary, she said the request was a minimal setback variance, and the development would be in harmony with the surrounding neighborhood. Chairperson Giuliano asked if any person would like to cross examine. Julie Kettler cross-examined the petitioner. She asked the petitioner to define if the length of the driveway was from the garage to the sidewalk or the garage out to the street. Bob and Donna Gialo said the distance was measured to the property line, which was less than the distance between the building and the street. Mr. Gialo said the proposed townhomes would be set back farther than the existing townhomes on Fairfield Court. Robert Kettler said this was the first he had heard of the request. He said there was not a lot of room for additional parking on the street. If the setback of the townhomes was reduced, there would not be as much room in the driveway for parking, which could impact parking on Fairfield Court. He asked where guests of the proposed townhomes would park. Ms. Gialo said the setback variance would not impact parking, because all the townhomes would have parking space in the driveways. She said the proposed townhomes are set back farther than the existing townhomes on Fairfield Court. Mr. Kettler said there would be no place to park on the cul-de-sac because of all the driveways. Any guest overflow would end up parking down along Fairfield Court. Sue Kramer, of Abbey Woods to the north of the subject property, asked for an explanation of the stormwater flow on the subject property. Mr. Gialo showed the site plan and explained where inlets would collect stormwater, and how the water would be transmitted to the stormwater detention area on the rear of the property. He said the existing stormwater detention area would be expanded. Village of Lombard Page 2 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 Ms. Kramer asked where the detention area drains. Mr. Gialo said it drains to county stormwater pipes on 21st Place. Ms. Kramer asked what recourse Abbey Woods residents would have if stormwater engineering turned out to be inefficient. Mr. Gialo said his engineer would engineer and design the system to manage all the water. The Village engineer would review the design during permit review. Ken Vos, resident of Congress Knolls to the east of the subject property, asked if the petitioner could ensure the detention basin would not impact Congress Knolls. Mr. Gialo said the detention area would have a restrictor that would meter the flow of water out of the detention basin. Mr. Vos said the stormwater detention area is sometimes full. Mr. Gialo said there had been an issue with the restrictor that caused in issue in the past. This issue had been addressed. He also said the detention area is designed to be full under certain conditions. He said the Village will review the design for the new development to ensure compliance with current requirements. If there are maintenance issues in the future, the Village would reach out to the property owner or homeowners’ association for action. Liz Palmer said 21st Place had flooded many times when the detention pond has overflowed. She asked who Congress Knolls residents should call if the detention area overflows. She said the detention area was well-maintained but it still fills. Mr. Gialo said Ms. Palmer would call the Village, and the Village would call Mr. Gialo. He said he would be expanding the detention area to collect additional water. Ms. Palmer asked who would maintain the detention area. Mr. Gialo said the HOA will maintain it. Ms. Palmer asked if Mr. Gialo had considered adding fencing along the rear of the development adjacent to 21st Place. Mr. Gialo said he would look into it but he did not have any plans to put up fencing. Ms. Palmer said there had been issues with people coming into the neighborhood and committing property crimes. Mr. Gialo said his development would not create any such issues, but he would consider Village of Lombard Page 3 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 fencing. Chairperson Giuliano asked if any person would like to cross examine. Hearing none, she asked if anyone would like to speak in favor or against this petition, or for public comment. Julie Kettler asked if the development would be low-income housing, and what was the average size of each unit. Mr. Gialo said it would not be low-income housing. He said the larger unit would be around 1,700 square feet and the smaller units in the middle would be around 1,300 square feet. Ms. Kettler asked if there would be a basement. Mr. Gialo said there would be a walkout basement. Robert Kettler asked if the basements would be lower than the detention area. Mr. Gialo said the basement would be lower, with a wall around the detention area. He said the engineering plan would address this. Mr. Kettler said he was still concerned about parking on Fairfield Court. He thought there should be additional parking for overflow parking. He was concerned about rain levels and the detention area overflowing. Mr. Gialo said there was space to park on Fairfield Court. He said the driveways proposed for the townhomes would be longer than the driveways of the existing townhomes on Fairfield Court. He said there would be space in the driveways for guest parking. He noted that Fairfield Court had a lot of space for parking, with no development on the south side of the street. Mr. Kettler said he was still concerned about parking. Ms. Gialo said she understood the concern, but noted the development would meet parking requirements, and there was space for guest parking on Fairfield Court. Mr. Kettler said this was the reason the Village had setback requirements, to allow parking in driveways. He was not in favor of the requested setback variance. Joseph Scolire addressed the Plan Commission. He was concerned about construction traffic on Fairfield Court, because it is the only road accessing the townhomes on that street. He asked if there would be an Village of Lombard Page 4 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 additional road connecting Fairfield Court with 22nd Street. Mr. Gialo said there would not be another road. Construction traffic would use Fairfield Court. He said the contractors would be mindful not to block driveways. He had built in town before and would be mindful of construction traffic on the road. Mr. Scolire asked about the construction timeframe. Mr. Gialo said it would be approximately one year. He said there would be an ebb and flow of contractors. They would not all be on site at the same time, but would be staggered based on the construction stage. Mr. Scolire asked about the sizes of the units. Mr. Gialo said the middle units would be 1,400-1,500 square feet, and end units 1,700-1,800 square feet. Mr. Scolire asked about the price of the units. Mr. Gialo said they would be higher end units. Mr. Scolire asked if the new units would want to join the HOA of the other units on Fairfield Court. Mr. Gialo said that would be up to the existing HOA. Mr. Scolire asked if there would be Section 8 housing. Mr. Gialo said these units would be for sale, not rent. Most likely the HOA documents would prohibit rentals. Liz Palmer said the townhomes abutting 18th Street had a solid privacy fence. She was asking about a similar style fence on the subject property. Mr. Gialo said there was a lot of distance between the townhomes and the back of the detention area. He said it would not be an inviting walking path for people to cut through. He would consider a fence but was not sure at this time. Ms. Palmer asked about the size and location of the detention area. A discussion ensued about the proposed expansion of the pond. Ms. Palmer said there were concerns about dog walkers on the subject property coming into Congress Knolls. Ms. Palmer asked if the existing trees on the southeast corner of the property would remain. She cited privacy concerns. Village of Lombard Page 5 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 Mr. Gialo described some of the proposed landscaping. Ms. Gialo said the development would meet landscaping requirements. They would keep as many trees as possible. Mr. Gialo noted that there were requirements for transitional landscaping on the east side of the pond. Leila Husetovic said the Abbey Woods residents were appreciative of Mr. Gialo’s revised landscape plan showing additional plantings on the north side of the subject property. She asked that the petitioner preserve all existing trees. Mr. Gialo said he would have to look at the property. He said some trees may need to come down to allow for stormwater pipe construction. He would save the trees if possible. Ms. Husetovic asked if the detention area would be used to store construction materials. Mr. Gialo said the detention area would not be used for material storage. Roger Boerema said he lived immediately north of the subject property. He said there is a swale near the property line that fills with water. He asked if the petitioner could guarantee there would be no additional water in the swale during construction. He said there had been flooding issues in the past. Ms. Gialo understood Mr. Boerema’s concerns. She said they cannot guarantee that flooding will never occur but the petitioner will build to plan and maintain the development, to ensure they do not create an additional issue with their development. Chairperson Giuliano asked if any person would like to speak in favor or against this petition, or for public comment. Hearing none, she asked for the staff report. Ms. Papke presented the interdepartmental review committee report, which was entered into the public record in its entirety. The petitioner proposes to construct six townhomes on vacant property at the east end of Fairfield Court. The subject property is in the R4 Limited General Residence District. The petitioner requests a variance to allow one of the townhomes to encroach into the required 30-foot front yard setback. The other five units comply with the 30-foot front yard setback requirement in R4. The proposed plan meets all other bulk requirements for the R4 District, including rear and side yard setbacks, Village of Lombard Page 6 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 minimum lot width, and density. In 1990, the Village approved a development plan for the length of Fairfield Court that consisted of three sets of five attached single-family residences (15 total townhomes). A variance was approved to allow the 15 townhomes to have a front yard setback of 20 feet instead of 30 feet as required in the underlying R4 District. The property was subsequently subdivided into 12 lots rather than 15. Eight townhomes were constructed along the west stretch of Fairfield Court, with a front setback of 20 feet. The eastern four lots remain undeveloped. The proposed plan calls for six townhomes. One of the townhomes will be set back 25 feet from the front property line. The other five townhomes meet the 30-foot front setback requirement. The previously approved front yard setback variance was conditioned upon the final development complying with the site plan presented to the Village in 1990, which showed five townhome units on the subject property. The submitted plan is substantially different from the previously submitted plan, as the number of units is increasing from five to six. Approval of a new variance for the front yard setback is required. Ms. Papke said the petitioner had noted that the reduced front yard setback was necessary due to the curve of the cul-de-sac bulb. Staff further noted that the proposed setback is greater than the 20-foot front setback that was previously approved for the property. Staff did not expect the reduced front yard setback to negatively impact Fairfield Court or surrounding properties. The petitioner had submitted a landscape plan. This plan shows a dense planting or arborvitae trees along the north property line, which the petitioner is proposing in response to questions from the neighboring townhome development. The plan requires some additional landscaping along the east property line. This is noted as a comment and condition of approval in the staff report, and will be reviewed at permitting. Staff recommended approval of the requested variance, subject to the conditions in the staff report. Chairperson Giuliano asked if there were any questions or comments on the staff report. Hearing none, she opened the meeting to comments from the Commissioners. Village of Lombard Page 7 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 Commissioner Johnston clarified that the item the Plan Commission needed to address was the request to allow one unit to be set back 25 feet instead of 30 feet from the front property line. Chair Giuliano concurred. She said some of the comments on stormwater were outside the Plan Commission purview. Stormwater issues would be reviewed by staff during permitting. On a motion by Commissioner Johnston, and a second by Commissioner Sweetser, the Plan Commission voted 5-0 to recommend that the Village Board approve the petition associated with PC 25-12 subject to the five (5) conditions in the staff report: 1. That the petitioner shall satisfactorily address all comments noted within the Inter-Departmental Review Committee Report; 2. That the petitioner shall develop the site in accordance with the plans submitted as part of this petition and referenced in the Inter-Departmental Review Committee Report, except as they may be changed to conform to Village Code; 3. That the petitioner shall apply for and receive building permits for the proposed improvements; 4. That the petitioner shall submit an updated landscape plan that complies with the requirements of Sections 155.707 of the Village Code prior to obtaining a building permit for the proposed improvements; and 5. That this approval shall be subject to the commencement time provisions as set forth within Section 155.103(F)(11). The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Ruth Sweetser, Leigh Giuliano, Bill Johnston, Alissa Verson, and Brendan Flanigan Absent: 1- Robert Spreenberg Business Meeting Approval of Minutes A motion was made by Commissioner Verson, seconded by Chairperson Giuliano, that the minutes of the July 28, 2025 meetings be approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Ruth Sweetser, Leigh Giuliano, Bill Johnston, Alissa Verson, and Brendan Flanigan Absent: 1- Robert Spreenberg Public Participation Village of Lombard Page 8 Plan Commission Minutes August 18, 2025 There was no Public Participation DuPage County Hearings There were no DuPage County Hearings Chairperson's Report There was no Chairperson's Report Planner's Report There was no Planner's Report Unfinished Business There was no Unfinished Business New Business There was no New Business Subdivision Reports There were no Subdivision Reports Site Plan Approvals There were no Site Plan Approvals Workshops There were no Workshops Adjournment A motion was made by Commissioner Johnston, seconded by Commissioner Sweetser, to adjourn the meeting at 8:01 p.m. The motion passed by an unanimous vote. Village of Lombard Page 9