Planning and Zoning Board

VILLAGE OF NILES 1000 Civic Center Drive www.vniles.com Final Approved Meeting Minutes Monday, October 5, 2020 7:00 PM Village Hall Planning and Zoning Board Chairman Thomas Kanelos Members Susan DeBartolo Morgan Dubiel, Vice Chairman Ted Karabatsos Terrence McConville Barbara Nakanishi Robert Schulter, Secretary Charles Ostman, Community Development Director Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ This Electronic Meeting is open to the public and the public may submit public comment in advance. Public comments will be accepted by email and phone call beforehand. Members of the public who would like to make a comment during the hearing via Zoom may sign up using the online form at www.vniles.com/october5speak. Public comments received by 5:00 p.m. on the day before the meeting will be read at the beginning of the meeting. Any comments received during the meeting will be held until the end of the meeting. Public comments should be emailed to nbb@vniles.com and contain: name; address (optional); city; phone (optional); and the agenda item you would like to comment on. Members of the public with no access to email may leave a message at 847-588-8077. Statement read by Chairman Thomas Kanelos: Due to the ongoing Covid-19 corona virus pandemic and the Governor’s statewide stay-at-home order suspending certain open meeting acts requirements, this meeting will be conducted remotely. The Commissioners and Staff participating in tonight’s meeting are all in different locations in accordance with social distancing guidelines. It is important that the cases scheduled tonight be heard to continue critical Village business which will enable ongoing construction, development, protection of property values and the promotion of the Village’s economic vitality. Any individual desiring to listen and/or participate in this meeting through the electronic meeting platform known as Zoom has been provided that opportunity by the Community Development Department in advance of the meeting. Finally, members of the public had the opportunity to submit written comments in advance of the meeting. These methods of public participation have been publicized on the Village website, through notices required for each case including newspaper publication and on the agenda for tonight’s meeting. And finally, since we are using Zoom for tonight’s meeting, we anticipate there could be some problems as we move through the agenda. When it is time for speakers, either petitioners or members of the public to speak, you will be unmuted. Staff will call all speakers by name and speakers will be able to raise your hand through Zoom to help us facilitate unmuting. After you speak, you will be muted again. Please note there may be a slight delay between being unmuted and being able to begin speaking. A reminder: all speakers are asked to present their comments in a respectful and courteous manner, as you always do. If inappropriate language or comments are expressed during this meeting by the public or any other speaking person, we will mute that speaker and end their participation. Thank you. CALL TO ORDER The Niles Planning and Zoning Board was called to order at 7:00 P.M. Page 2 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE/ROLL CALL All rose for the Pledge of Allegiance. PRESENT: 7 Chairman Thomas Kanelos, Commissioners Ted Karabatsos, Susan DeBartolo, Robert Schulter, Barbara Nakanishi, Terrence McConville, Morgan Dubiel Also present was Director of Community Development Charles Ostman, Planner I Nathan Bruemmer and Village Attorney Danielle Grcic. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chairman Kanelos asked if there were any additions, clarifications, or corrections to the minutes of September 14, 2020. There were none. He entertained a motion. Commissioner DeBartolo moved to approve the minutes of September 14, 2020. Seconded by Commissioner Nakanashi, on roll call the vote was: AYES: 7 DeBartolo, Schulter, Nakanishi, McConville, Dubiel, Karabatsos, Kanelos NAYS: 0 There being seven (7) affirmative votes the motion carried. PUBLIC COMMENT The public can ask questions or comment after the Board has heard the petitioners’ testimony following each case. OLD BUSINESS NEW BUSINESS 1. 20-ZP-17, 9600 N Milwaukee Ave A request for a Special Use Permit to allow a ‘Vehicle Repair – Minor’ doing business as Take 5 Oil Change at 9600 N Milwaukee Ave, Niles, IL 60714 as required by Section 8.2(A) of the Zoning Ordinance. Nathan Bruemmer, Planner I, presented this case. A legal notice was published in The Bugle on September 17, 2020. Notices were mailed out to Page 3 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ all property owners within 250’ on September 15, 2020. An onsite sign was placed on the property on September 17, 2020. The agenda was posted online on the Village of Niles website and is posted in the lobby of the Village Hall. The subject site is located on the northwest corner of Golf and Milwaukee. There are currently two vacant buildings on the property. The proposed action, if approved, will allow the petitioner to convert one of the buildings into a three-bay oil change facility. The building at 9606 N Milwaukee, formerly Nicky’s Bar, will be demolished as part of this project. Proposed hours of operation for Take 5 Oil will be Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The facility will employ eight to ten employees per shift. The Zoning Code requires that vehicle repair shops, major or minor, provide four parking spaces per service bay. This facility will have three service bays which means they require twelve spaces. The site plan shows that twelve spaces will be provided. The site is zoned C-2, General Commercial District, but it does require a Special Use permit as required by Section 8.2(A). The proposal is also consistent with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan designation of the area as a Regional Commercial District. Chairman Kanelos said there were quite a few questions from Engineering, one by the Police Department and two by the Fire Department. He read Staff’s answers. To the best of Mr. Bruemmer’s knowledge, were the answers satisfactory? Mr. Bruemmer answered yes, he followed up with all the departments and no one had any issues. There were no other questions from the Commissioners for Staff. Chairman Kanelos called for the petitioner to come forward. Mike Strauss, 1004 Capitol Ln., Deerfield, IL 60015, and Mark Madigan, 1250 Lindenwood Dr., Winnetka, IL 60093, owner and franchisee of this Take 5 location came to the podium and were sworn in. Mr. Strauss explained this is an oil change facility where you do not leave your car. There will not be any parked cars that need to be worked on tomorrow or the next day. There is no staging, People drive through and it takes about 5 to 10 minutes. There are no pneumatic drills, no loud noise, no tire changing, and no debris left over. It is a very clean facility based on customer service. The concept is a fast, pleasant experience. He thinks the community will respond positively to this service. Page 4 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Mr. Madigan said it is a very simple business. There are three products: oil, wiper blades and filters. There would be some coolant as well. It is not a full-service auto business. Chairman Kanelos asked Mr. Ostman a question. On comments from his department, they will be exceeding the amount of EIFS allowed by a small amount. The answer is regarding the elevations of the building. Charles Ostman, Director of Community Development, said Take 5 has adjusted the elevations of the building, very much to their satisfaction. They do meet all the building code requirements. The building looks very nice. Chairman Kanelos said yes, it does look good. Commissioner Schulter asked the applicant if there were other Take 5 facilities in the area. Mr. Madigan said no, he is the first franchisee in the Chicagoland area. Two other people entered into franchise agreements with Take 5 but he is the first in this area. They are based in Charlotte, NC. Commissioner Schulter asked if the owner stays in the car, what is going to ensure that car owners are not going to start the car while the employee is working on changing the oil? Mr. Strauss said he was at headquarters in Charlotte last week and changed the oil on about forty cars. There are rigid procedures in place with vocal callouts. He likens it to a 1950’s gas station where the car pulls in and four people gather around your car to start working on it. No one is more concerned about safety than the employees themselves. They know how to guide a car in, where to stand when guiding the car, when to ask the owner to shut down the vehicle, callouts on when certain functions are being performed. They do not want the owner to start up the vehicle and ruin the engine. At that point Take 5 would be liable for paying that claim. In the interest of all parties involved, the rigid procedures are in place to keep everyone safe. Commissioner Schulter said when the motorist pulls in the vehicle, are there going to be step-down bays for the employees to work on the car? And are the motorists liable to keep their windows up or down? Mr. Strauss said yes. No one is permitted in that step-down area until the vehicle is shut down. The windows can be up or down; whatever way the motorist is comfortable. Everyone is fully masked inside the facility. Page 5 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Commissioner Nakanishi said Mr. Strauss mentioned a 1950’s gas station but it sounds more like a NASCAR pit stop to her. Mr. Strauss answered it could be the same analogy except they are not changing tires or working on engines. Chairman Kanelos asked if there were additional questions from the Commissioners or from the public. There were none. He entertained a motion. Commissioner Dubiel moved to approve item 20-ZP-17, a request for a Special Use Permit to allow a ‘Vehicle Repair – Minor’ doing business as Take 5 Oil Change at 9600 N Milwaukee Ave, Niles, IL 60714 as required by Section 8.2(A) of the Zoning Ordinance. It has met the burden of the requirements for a Special Use and the facts are at hand. Seconded by Commissioner DeBartolo, on roll call the vote was: AYES: 7 Dubiel, Karabatsos, DeBartolo, Schulter, Nakanishi, McConville, Kanelos NAYS: 0 There being seven (7) affirmative votes the motion carried. Chairman Kanelos stated this Board is a recommending Board to the Board of Trustees who can either confirm or negate this recommendation. It will be necessary for the petitioner to contact Mr. Ostman and ask to be placed on the Board of Trustees agenda. The petitioner will then be notified of the date and anyone in the audience who would like to be informed of the Board of Trustees date should leave their name and address with the recording secretary. 2. 20-ZP-19, 9347 – 9371 N Milwaukee Avenue A request for approval of a plat of subdivision for the property located at 9347-9371 Milwaukee Avenue. Nathan Bruemmer said a legal notice for this case is not required. Tonight’s agenda was posted online and in the lobby of the Village Hall as well. Millbrook Center LLC is the owner of the multi-tenant commercial property at 9347-9371 Milwaukee Ave. They are requesting a plat of subdivision to divide the existing property into two lots. In July 2017, Millbrook Center applied for and was granted a Special Use to allow the now existing Panda Express at the premises. This subdivision was supposed to go in front of the Planning and Zoning Board concurrent with the Special Use Application but was not ready in time and then never made it to the Board. At that time, several drafts of the proposed plat were reviewed by Public Works, Page 6 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Community Development and the Village’s consultants at Gewalt-Hamilton Associates. Minimal changes were necessary and they have been made. In August, Community Development staff was approached by the surveyor to finalize the proposed subdivision process. As there were very minor outstanding issues, Public Works and Gewalt-Hamilton reviewed and approved the plat. The final version is attached and in the Staff report. The property is 2.261 acres. The subject property will be divided into two lots. Lot 1 is proposed to be 0.618 acres and will be housing Panda Express. Lot 2 is proposed to be 1,643 acres and will be housing the existing multi-tenant retail center. Commissioner Dubiel sees there is a 24’ easement for access. Historically when it came to residences, the Village has been against these flag shaped lots. Mr. Ostman said the Village does allow flag shaped lots. At one time the older Zoning Code prohibited those types of lots. They are now allowed. Commissioner Dubiel said that at one time you put forth an effort against flag shaped lots. You mentioned fire, difficulty finding the space, etc. That is gone now. We no longer have that concern. Mr. Ostman said a long time ago there was a builder on Davis Street who wanted to subdivide into flag shaped lots. The Village took him to court to block that. This was all done before he came onboard. However, when he came onboard, he figured since the Village took someone to task about developing on flag shaped lots and won because of lack of correct language in the Zoning Code, that was when he prohibited developing on those types of lots. Since then they brought it back in when the Zoning Code was redone. Commissioner Dubiel said they have been allowed on Waukegan. He just wanted to make sure they were clear on this. Chairman Kanelos asked if there were more questions for Staff. There were none. He asked if the petitioner was present. Mr. Bruemmer said the petitioner is not present as this is more of a clerical issue. Chairman Kanelos asked if there were questions or comments from the public. There were none. Personally, he does not like when the petitioner does not show up. He entertained a motion. Commissioner Dubiel moved to approve item 20-ZP-19, a request for Page 7 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ approval of a plat of subdivision for the property located at 9347-9371 Milwaukee Avenue. Seconded by Commissioner DeBartolo, on roll call the vote was: AYES: 7 Dubiel, Karabatsos, DeBartolo, Schulter, Nakanishi, McConville, Kanelos NAYS: 0 There being seven (7) affirmative votes the motion carried. Chairman Kanelos called the roll as there were technical issues on the part of Commissioner Schulter. Those issues were resolved quickly. Chairman Kanelos stated this Board is a recommending Board to the Board of Trustees who can either confirm or negate this recommendation. It will be necessary for the petitioner to contact Mr. Ostman and ask to be placed on the Board of Trustees agenda. The petitioner will then be notified of the date and anyone in the audience who would like to be informed of the Board of Trustees date should leave their name and address with the recording secretary. 3. 20-ZP-21, 8307 W Golf Rd A request for a Special Use Permit to allow ‘Cosmetic Tattoo’ at My Salon Suite, 8307 W Golf Rd., Niles, IL 60714 as required by Section 8.2(A) of the Zoning Ordinance. Nathan Bruemmer presented this case. The applicant was in front of this Board last month for a different request. A legal notice was published in The Bugle on September 17, 2020. Notices were mailed to all property owners withing 250’ on September 15, 2020. An onsite sign was placed on the property on September 17, 2020 and a copy of the agenda was put online on the Village website and posted in the lobby of the Village Hall. The applicant, Mr. Toni Gozali, owns and operates My Salon Suite located at 8307 Golf Rd. in the Four Flags Shopping Center. The property is zoned C-2 ‘General Commercial’. My Salon Suite is a nationwide franchise that offers private individual suites for beauty service professionals, such as hair stylists or estheticians, to rent out for a flat fee. This location is divided into twenty- eight suites. Mr. Gozali would like to rent one of the suites [#133] to a permanent make-up artist [known as Cosmetic Tattooing in the Zoning Code]. Per Section 8.2(A) of the Zoning Ordinance, Cosmetic Tattoo requires a Special Use in the C-2 district. The requested Special Use permit would cover only the suite indicated in the application. Chairman Kanelos asked how many cosmetic tattoo places are there in the Village. Page 8 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Mr. Bruemmer said they are unable to track that. He did do a Google search before the meeting and it appears there are none. Chairman Kanelos said they have approved multiples over the past few years. Mr. Ostman said he could not tell whether or not they are still in business. New software for licensing does not identify what a particular business specializes in. He does remember one located in Golf Mill. Chairman Kanelos asked if there is a list of what is allowed and considered cosmetic tattooing. Mr. Bruemmer said they can go with what the Zoning Code says. A classic tattoo parlor would be a body modification establishment. That is a business that offers non-cosmetic tattooing services, body piercing, and/or non-medical body modification. Chairman Kanelos said he read all that. He did not see any kind of definition. Is it just eyebrows? What is it? Is a tiny butterfly or a teardrop considered cosmetic? Commissioner Dubiel said cosmetic tattooing offers medically necessary services. He added we are allowing this just for Suite 133. The petitioner has other suites at this location. Would it make more sense to say we are allowing one at this property? Then it would give this person some flexibility if it came up, say they had to change suites or reconfigure the area. Mr. Ostman said that would be fine. Commissioner Dubiel said rather than just limiting this to Suite 133 we could say we will allow one cosmetic tattoo business at this My Salon location. Chairman Kanelos answered yes. Commissioner Dubiel’s second question is then is this request for My Salon Suite or this particular tattoo person? Since the tattoo person is not named in this request, if they left, they would not take the Special Use with them; it would remain with the property, correct? Then it would make most sense not to have this just for Suite 133 but for the whole address, correct? Mr. Ostman said yes. Page 9 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Chairman Kanelos said he has a concern they would not get to question the other person and he feels they should approve or not approve the way it is written. Commissioner DeBartolo said in looking up information on this type of business, the body artist has to be able to wash their hands where they are working and to have a bathroom for their use only. This is governed by IDPH. Do they have to be specific about a suite? Commissioner Schulter asked if the body artists have to be licensed. Commissioner DeBartolo said yes, they have to apply for a body art permit. And the person cannot be a cosmetologist or an aesthetician. Chairman Kanelos said if this Board approves the suite, the tattoo artist still has to abide by all state regulations. He said they do not have to be that specific but need to concentrate on zoning. Commissioner Dubiel said there is an operating lease that is part of tonight’s packet that specifies different things the tenant can or cannot do. It would be of interest to meet this tenant and get more specifics. Perhaps they should table this request and bring it up at the next meeting when they can meet this tattoo artist. Chairman Kanelos said that person is here tonight. But if there is a motion, they might want to reference the lease agreement Sections 4.4 and 4.5. He asked if there were any more questions for Staff. There were none. He called for the petitioner. Toni Gozali, petitioner, 955 Summit Dr., Deerfield, IL 60015, approached the microphone and was sworn in. Thank you for your time. He brought the licensed aesthetician with him tonight in case you want to ask questions of her. The tattooing is not body tattooing but is applied only for makeup. It is a unique service and there is not much available in the area. It will be convenient for people of Niles and the surrounding area to seek this kind of service. It will be a good thing for Niles because the aesthetician will bring clients with her to Niles and those people may visit other businesses in the area. Thank you for your support. Commissioner DeBartolo asked if there would be any piercing when cosmetic tattooing is performed. Mr. Gozali said he brought his candidate who will start this business. Page 10 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ Svetlana [Lana] Ross, Norridge, IL, came forward and was sworn in. Ms. Ross said she does use a needle but not like a regular tattoo needle which goes deep in the skin. She does cosmetic tattooing on the top layer of the skin. It is not as invasive and lasts one and a half to two years. It is a cosmetic procedure to enhance beauty of lips and eyeliner. It is helpful for people who have lost eyebrows or are cancer survivors or just women who want to enhance their beauty. Commissioner DeBartolo asked if she has a blood-born pathogen certificate. Ms. Ross said yes. And she is a licensed aesthetician for past seven years but for this type of work she had to become certified and took about ten different trainings. Commissioner Dubiel said you are leasing this suite from Mr. Gozali. If permission is granted, we should be giving this Special Use to the licensee so there is some level of control. If we give the Special Use to the salon, he will be able to switch licensees at any time. Chairman Kanelos said the salon owner will not be able to switch if the license is attached to a suite. He feels they have to give it to the property owner. Village Attorney Danielle Grcic answered yes, the Chairman is correct. The Special Use permit goes with the application to a specific property, not just a suite. It has to be the owner of record of that property. Chairman Kanelos asked if that means Mr. Gozali can open another business like this in any of the suites or can we restrict it to one suite. Ms. Grcic said you can restrict it to the one suite if there are already suite designations. As a condition to the Special Use permit, it would be restricted to that one specific suite. The Special Use would be applied so long as there is a licensed aesthetician that is working at that suite and all of the laws of the State of Illinois and County of Cook are complied with while that business is in use. Commissioner Dubiel said then we do not need this aesthetician’s testimony at all if they are granting it the property owner who is also the applicant here. Ms. Grcic said it depends on what you are looking for from the testimony. It can provide that fact there is not going to be any injury to the public because Page 11 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ there is going to be a licensed aesthetician worker in the facility that knows what needs to be done. Commissioner Dubiel said that could be anybody. So, if this lessee were to lose her license for some reason, Suite 133 can be sublet to someone else, correct? We have no way to know or monitor this situation. Ms. Grcic answered correct. The Use does not stop within a six-month period. She said this issue came up once before with a massage parlor. We can require them to register with the Office of Community Development as to who the service provider is. Anytime there is turnover, they need to provide us with a list and turn over the certificate required to carry on the business but it comes to enforcement. Commissioner DeBartolo thinks IDPH initially goes in and checks to see all the requirements are being met and they follow up as well. She does not know if they have to put in any enforcements since IDPH has to go in. Chairman Kanelos said Commissioner Dubiel is talking about something different, whether or not the person stays. He asked if there were any other questions from Commissioners or the public. There were none. He entertained a motion. Commissioner Dubiel moved to approve 20-ZP-21, a request for a Special Use Permit to allow ‘Cosmetic Tattoo’ at My Salon Suite, 8307 W Golf Rd., Niles, IL 60714 as required by Section 8.2(A) of the Zoning Ordinance. Part of this approval would include the verbiage from the lease for this unit called My Salon Suite of Niles Project Descriptions and include Lease Agreement Section 4.4 and 4.5. We would also require an ongoing active business license to whoever leases Suite 133. Seconded by Commissioner DeBartolo, on roll call the vote was: AYES: 7 Dubiel, Karabatsos, DeBartolo, Schulter, Nakanishi, McConville, Kanelos NAYS: 0 There being seven (7) affirmative votes the motion carried. Chairman Kanelos stated this Board is a recommending Board to the Board of Trustees who can either confirm or negate this recommendation. It will be necessary for the petitioner to contact Mr. Ostman and ask to be placed on the Board of Trustees agenda. The petitioner will then be notified of the date and anyone in the audience who would like to be informed of the Board of Trustees date should leave their name and address with the recording secretary. Page 12 of 13 Planning and Zoning Board Final Approved Meeting Minutes October 5, 2020 __________________________________________________________ ____________ DISCUSSIONS ADJOURNMENT Chairman Kanelos entertained a motion to adjourn. Commissioner DeBartolo moved to adjourn. Seconded by Commissioner McConville, on roll call the vote was: AYES: 7 DeBartolo, Schulter, Nakanishi, McConville, Dubiel, Karabatsos, Kanelos NAYS: 0 There being seven (7) affirmative votes the motion carried The meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. Kathleen Janessa, Recording Secretary Page 13 of 13