Plan Commission

Draft Plan Commission Meeting Minutes Date: June 3, 2021 A motion was made by Commissioner Mitchell and seconded by Commissioner Franklin to approve the minutes of the May 6, 2021 Plan Commission meeting. The chairman read the following statement into the record. Until further notice, meetings of the Skokie Plan Commission will be electronically, with a majority of members participating via remote access in order to comply with the State of Illinois Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation. Members of the public who wish to comment as to an item on the published legal notice must submit their statement or question in writing to Steve Marciani at steve.marciani@skokie.org and all properly submitted statements or questions will be presented and read during the relevant portion of the meeting. Written comments also may be submitted by email to citizencomments@skokie.org ; by mail to Village of Skokie, Attn: Matt Brandmeyer, Ex Officio Plan Commissioner, 5127 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60077; or via the Village’s drop box (no later than noon the day of the meeting) located by the public entry to Village Hall. The chairman called the roll to confirm a quorum. Currently there are two vacancies on the commission. Six commissioners were present. Case Descriptions: 2021-18P – Alley Vacation: alley between 8057 Niles Center Road and 8052 Elmwood Avenue Haben Properties, LLC, is requesting a vacation of the alley between 8057 Niles Center Road and 8052 Elmwood Avenue in a CX Core Mixed-Use district. Discussion and Interested Parties Legal notice was advertised, posted, and delivered to property owners in the area as prescribed by the Zoning Chapter. Corporation Counsel determined that notice was proper and correct. Mr. John Haben, presented the case. A graphic was shown depicting the portion of the existing alley that is the subject of the request. The northern & southern portions of the alley have already been vacated and are owned by Haben Properties and John Haben. Staff requested that the report be entered into the record as presented. This portion of alley is not touching any right-of-way. A commissioner asked how the alley is currently being used. Staff answered that it doesn’t looks like an alley; it is paved and looks like a driveway in the funeral home’s parking lot. It is used for funeral home vehicles and the Village’s garbage & recycling trucks. There were questions from the public wanting clarifications that this vacation will not affect the cemetery or access to Warren Street. Staff responded to each stating that 588946 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-18P on 6-03-2021 the alley portion is surrounded by private property all owned by a single entity. In closing, Mr. Haben agrees with the staff report and has nothing further to add. Recommendations and Voting Case 2021-18P – Alley Vacation: alley between 8057 Niles Center Road and 8052 Elmwood Avenue A motion was made to approve the vacation of the alley between 8057 Niles Center Road and 8052 Elmwood Avenue in a CX Core Mixed-Use district. Motion: Mitchell Second: Mathee Absent: Burman Ayes: 6 Nays: 0 588946 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-18P on 6-03-2021  Draft Plan Commission Meeting Minutes Date: June 3, 2021 A motion was made by Commissioner Mitchell and seconded by Commissioner Franklin to approve the minutes of the May 6, 2021 Plan Commission meeting. The chairman read the following statement into the record. Until further notice, meetings of the Skokie Plan Commission will be electronically, with a majority of members participating via remote access in order to comply with the State of Illinois Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation. Members of the public who wish to comment as to an item on the published legal notice must submit their statement or question in writing to Steve Marciani at steve.marciani@skokie.org and all properly submitted statements or questions will be presented and read during the relevant portion of the meeting. Written comments also may be submitted by email to citizencomments@skokie.org ; by mail to Village of Skokie, Attn: Matt Brandmeyer, Ex Officio Plan Commissioner, 5127 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60077; or via the Village’s drop box (no later than noon the day of the meeting) located by the public entry to Village Hall. The chairman called the roll to confirm a quorum. Currently there are two vacancies on the commission. Six commissioners were present. Case Descriptions: 2021-13P – Parking Determination: Amazon at 7539 Linder Avenue Amazon.com Services, LLC, is requesting a parking determination for a truck and freight transportation services use at 7539 Linder Avenue. Discussion and Interested Parties Legal notice was advertised and posted as prescribed by the Zoning Chapter. Personal notice for Case 2021-13P was not necessary. Ms. Jill Crozier, construction manager for Amazon, presented the case. In her overview, she stated that Amazon is leasing the facility and has made upgrades to the parking lot to reach Village compliancy. Staff requested the report be entered into the record as presented. They are accepting the submitted Traffic Impact Study and are recommending 207 on-site required parking spaces. A commissioner inquired if the parking requirement has been met and if additional drivers and employees will be hired to cover peak periods. Staff stated that 209 parking spaces were actually counted. Ms. Crozier answered that when sizing their parking needs, Amazon always uses peak numbers right from the start so that there is no need to re-configure for more parking later. Recommendations and Voting 588948 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-13P on 6-03-2021 The chairman stated, as this is a parking determination case, the Plan Commission is the final hearing body and no further approval is required. A motion was made to grant, as presented, the on-site parking requirement determined to be 207 spaces. Motion: Mathee Second: Mitchell Absent: Burman Ayes: 6 Nays: 0 588948 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-13P on 6-03-2021  Plan Commission Meeting Minutes Date: June 3, 2021 A motion was made by Commissioner Mitchell and seconded by Commissioner Franklin to approve the minutes of the May 6, 2021 Plan Commission meeting. The chairman read the following statement into the record. Until further notice, meetings of the Skokie Plan Commission will be electronically, with a majority of members participating via remote access in order to comply with the State of Illinois Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation. Members of the public who wish to comment as to an item on the published legal notice must submit their statement or question in writing to Steve Marciani at steve.marciani@skokie.org and all properly submitted statements or questions will be presented and read during the relevant portion of the meeting. Written comments also may be submitted by email to citizencomments@skokie.org ; by mail to Village of Skokie, Attn: Matt Brandmeyer, Ex Officio Plan Commissioner, 5127 Oakton Street, Skokie, IL 60077; or via the Village’s drop box (no later than noon the day of the meeting) located by the public entry to Village Hall. The chairman called the roll to confirm a quorum. Currently there are two vacancies on the commission. Six commissioners were present. Case Descriptions: 2021-14P – Special Use Permit: 7539 Linder Avenue CP Logistics Linder Avenue, LLC, on behalf of Amazon.com Services, LLC, is requesting a special use permit for truck and freight transportation services at 7539 Linder Avenue in an M1 Office Assembly zoning district and any other relief discovered during the reivew of this case. 10-28-305-024-0000 Discussion and Interested Parties Legal notice was advertised, posted, and delivered to all property owners within the area as prescribed by the Zoning Chapter. Corporation Counsel determined that notice was proper and correct. Ms. Jill Crozier, construction manager for Amazon, presented the case. In her overview, she stated that this facility is not the typical Amazon operation; it is different from the one on Howard Street; it is much smaller in scale and called an SSD site (sub same day). They will be using flex drivers who are not employees of Amazon. These drivers will be using their own vehicles (mostly Sprinter vans) to deliver packages and products within a 4-hour span inside a certain radius. Delivery to further distances will be within a 12-hour delivery window. The chairman asked what the hours will be. Ms. Crozier stated that they have 6 docks for a 24/7 operation. There will be vehicles coming & going around the clock. The peak delivery 588952 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-14P on 6-03-2021 time is early morning; afternoons slack off, and they hit another peak again at night. If people order at midnight, they could expect to get their items in 4 hours if they are housed at the facility. A commissioner questioned with a 24/7 operation, would there will be enough space for neighboring businesses to utilize their own docks. Ms. Crozier stated that this facility is a confined area which doesn’t require a guard shack to regulate the vehicles coming in & out. However, with 6 docks there are people to direct the trucks. She has witnessed, probably for driver convenience, trucks not in assigned spaces and parked all over the place. She has reached out to the site leader to get it regulated and under control; it needs to be policed and the flex drivers need to be respectful to the neighbors. There will not be any semi- staging on Linder Avenue. Since the site is already operational and a concern of a neighboring business noted, the commissioner asked if it were to be a problem, who could someone reach out to. Ms. Crozier suggested discussing issues with the building security guard or call the facility. The chairman advised staff to obtain a directory of responsible company contacts should problems arise. Staff requested the report to be entered into the record as presented. Public comment emails were attached to the staff report regarding traffic problems on Linder; the blocking of building entrances, driveways and loading docks; and air quality & fuel consumption. The petitioner can respond directly to them. Staff noted receiving revised site plans after the report was written. Condition #1 lists the minor adjustments to the site that have been since updated. Staff is recommending a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis be completed by Amazon to determine if a traffic signal is needed at Long Avenue and Fargo to address the increase in traffic congestion. If the study finds one is warranted, Amazon, and not the Village, should be responsible for the costs. A commissioner asked if this request has ever been attached as a condition of approval to other applicants or if this would be setting a precedent. Staff responded that Village Crossing, the Illinois Science +Technology Park, south of the hospital on Golf Road and Kenton, at St. Louis and Touhy, and Lawndale & Touhy were some of the developments where traffic signals were installed as a condition of the development. Staff also inquired about the proposed concrete pad that is partially in the right-of-way. Ms. Crozier recalled that was a smoking area for the facility, which is no longer part of the plan. It will be removed from the plans. There were no additional comments from the public. Recommendations and Voting A motion was made to concur with staff for approval, with the minor adjustments, as amended by staff, for a special use permit for truck and freight transportation services at 7539 Linder Avenue in an M1 Office Assembly zoning district. Motion: Mitchell Second: Franklin Absent: Burman Ayes: 6 Nays: 0 588952 - Plan Commission meeting minutes for Case 2021-14P on 6-03-2021