The village of Plainfield will not be welcoming a crop of new townhomes on 127th Street.
At its Monday meeting, the Plainfield Village Board rejected a set of measures to advance plans for Park West townhomes on 11.43 acres of incorporated land owned by Grace Pointe Church, just west of Plainfield Creative World School and south of Canterbury Woods subdivision.
Residents had turned out in numbers to express their views of the development at recent public meetings. Among the concerns raised by the public were density and traffic.
Members of the public did not speak in favor or opposition to the project at Monday’s meeting.
Jonathan Proulx, director of planning for the village, said advancing the revised development plans does not ensure the public will be satisfied.
“I think traffic remains a concern whether this development is approved or not,” he said.
The now-vacant site was zoned for R-1 Low Density Residential use, but the applicant, AP Homes, requested R-3 Townhouse Residential zoning.
Proposed plans presented to the village were comprised of five 6-unit buildings and three 5-unit buildings on 6.35 acres, and storm water management areas and landscape buffers on 3.4 acres.
The applicant had agreed to make concessions to help advance the project. Proposed development plans would have created a right-of-way to connect to West 127th Street to provide more open space on top of reducing the number of townhome units from 70 to 51.
Originally, the land was dedicated for an 800-seat church, but those plans never materialized.
“From the drawings, it’s not what I’d like to see for that area,” Trustee Cally Larson said.
Larson said she doesn’t view the development being economically viable for what the village is asking for.
“I’m concerned when we keep asking to reduce the unit count that in order to make it profitable, we don’t get as high as a grade of profit,” she said.
Several trustees said they are not in favor of the development because they think the density is still too high and the access points are not appropriate.
The plan commission provided a 4-3 recommendation of denial for the project’s site plan and preliminary plat.
Proulx said the plan commission is asking that the proposal assure that lots designated for open space remain as such.
Trustee Ed O’Rourke questioned why the village board would ask the applicant to make concessions if no one wants to advance the project.
“I think if we’re concerned that we don’t like it, maybe it’s better we tell them upfront than ask them to make adjustments or changes that nobody’s really looking to support,” he said.
O’Rourke asked if it is realistic to assume the property can be filled with fewer units than what is proposed.
Proulx said the problem with that idea is “the lower the number of units, I think, the harder it is to spread some of the fixed infrastructure costs” to make for a viable project.
In a 4-1 decision, Plainfield officials rejected the applicant’s plans to allow for the development of Park West. Voting yes was O’Rourke. Trustee Bill Lamb was absent.
Other business
Trustees passed an ordinance increasing the village’s total number of Class E Liquor Licenses to 14 for Giambotta Pizza and Chai Tai Restaurant.
The board adopted an ordinance granting village of Plainfield landmark nomination to the Plymouth Congregational Church property at 24022 W. Lockport St.