HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 09/06/2012 - Planning and Zoning CommissionCity of McHenry
Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes
September 6, 2012
Chairman Schepler called the September 6, 2012 regularly scheduled meeting of the City of McHenry
Planning and Zoning Commission to order at 7:30 p.m. In attendance were the following: Buhrman,
Doherty, Morck, Schepler, and Strach. Absent: Nadeau, Thacker. Also in attendance were: Deputy City
Administrator Martin and Planning and Zoning Secretary Wolf.
Public Hearing: Andrea Papas Cutting
File No. Z-799
4509 W. Elm Street
Use Variance
Chairman Schepler called the Public Hearing to order at 7:31 p.m. regarding File No Z-799 an application
for a use variance to allow a residential use and a financial institution as submitted by Andrea Papas
Cutting for the property located at 4509 W. Elm Street.
Chairman Schepler stated Notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Northwest Herald on August
22, 2012. Notices were mailed to all abutting property owners of record as required by ordinance. The
subject property was posted. A Certificate of Publication and Affidavit of Compliance with notice
requirements are on file in the City Clerk’s Office.
In attendance was Andrea Cutting, 635 Tiverton Rd, Lake Forest, IL 60045 and Patricia Papas, 916 W. Old
Mill Rd., Lake forest, IL 60045, who were sworn in by Chairman Schepler.
Andrea Cutting provided a summary of the request before the Commission at this Hearing stating the
property has been vacant and for sale or rent for a considerable length of time. A tenant has been
found who wishes to have a long-term lease but a variance is needed to allow residential and
commercial use as well as allowing a financial institution on the property.
Deputy City Administrator Martin provided the Commission with the Staff Report regarding this matter.
The property was originally developed with a single-family residence (two-bedrooms, 1,051 square feet),
which was constructed in 1957, along with a detached garage. The commercial addition (1,916 square
feet) was constructed to the north of the residence to accommodate Granny’s quilts. The property
owners would like the ability to lease the front commercial half of the building to a financial institution
and the rear residential portion of the building as a residential use. The property has been vacant for a
few years and if approved there would be two principal land uses on one lot (residential use and
financial institution), which is not permitted by the zoning ordinance. Additionally, a use variance is
required to allow the financial institution land use. Financial institutions are not permitted in the C-5
zoning district.
Deputy City Administrator Martin stated the lot is extremely long and substantial green and vegetative
buffer exist towards the south and west property lines. It would be a substantial hardship for the
applicants to retrofit the building to be all commercial and staff believes this is also not a long-term
solution. The financial institution use is a potential long-term, and in staff’s opinion, a productive use of
the building, which will blend with the commercial along Illinois Route 120. Staff has no problems with
recommending approval of the use variance for a financial institution and a residential use. Staff stated
existing property maintenance items will be addressed on-site prior to building occupancy, and with
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September 6, 2012
Page 2
additional investment to the exterior of the building (painting/siding) and landscaping, the property will
be a productive commercial site conforming to the surrounding area. It is Staff’s recommendation to
approve a use variance to allow a financial institution land use and single-family residence on the
subject property with the following conditions:
1. Parking lot is restriped;
2. Handicapped parking space is restriped to comply with Illinois Accessibility Code;
3. Overgrown trees and vegetation be trimmed and maintained going forward;
4. The dumpster be fully enclosed;
5. The driveway to the residential in the rear be re-established with a fresh gravel/stone base;
6. Additional landscape plantings are installed within the general parking area north of the
building. This could be in the form of bushes, trees or a combination thereof with the intent
being to make the property more visually appealing from Illinois Route 120 and breakup the
asphalt parking area to the building.
Chairman Schepler invited questions and/or comments from the Commission.
Commissioner Doherty inquired if there is a steel firewall separation between the commercial and
residential areas of the property. Deputy City Administrator Martin responded there is a firewall and
the City building department has already performed a walkthrough inspection and conditioned
occupancy on the need for the firewall to remain.
Discussion ensued regarding the number of entrance and exit doors and the number of restrooms on
the property. Ms. Cutting stated there are two doors in the commercial property, one in the front and
one on the west wall, and one outside entrance door in the back for the residential portion of the
property. There are presently two restrooms in the residential portion and if the use variance is
approved they will add ADA approved bathrooms in the commercial portion.
In response to an inquiry regarding the outside appearance of the property, Ms. Cutting opined the
tenant will be doing a complete facelift to the building but they will clean up the yard and repair the
gravel driveway. The unscreened dumpster mentioned actually belongs to a neighboring property and
that property owner is aware it needs to be screened properly. Ms. Cutting stated they have not yet
determined where a dumpster will be located on the subject property, but they will comply with current
codes for placement and screening.
Commissioner Buhrman stated he has a problem with requests to change the zoning regulations already
in place for residential use in conjunction with commercial use, but understands this is an old property
and the prior use has been grandfathered in place.
Chairman Schepler opened the floor to questions and comments from the audience. There was no one
in attendance who wished to address the Commission regarding this matter. Chairman Schepler closed
the public comment portion of the hearing at 7:50 p.m.
Motion by Doherty, seconded by Strach, to recommend to the City Council with regard to File No. Z-799,
an application for a use variance to allow a residential use and a financial institution on the property
located at 4509 W. Elm Street, with the following conditions:
1. Parking lot is restriped;
2. Handicapped parking space is restriped to comply with Illinois Accessibility Code;
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September 6, 2012
Page 3
3. Overgrown trees and vegetation be trimmed and maintained going forward;
4. The dumpster be fully enclosed;
5. The driveway to the residential in the rear be re-established with a fresh gravel/stone base;
6. Additional landscape plantings are installed within the general parking area north of the
building. This could be in the form of bushes, trees or a combination thereof with the intent
being to make the property more visually appealing from Illinois Route 120 and breakup the
asphalt parking area to the building.
as presented by applicant Andrea Papas Cutting, be granted, and that Table 32(A), of the Zoning
Ordinance, has been met.
Voting Aye: Buhrman, Doherty, Morck, Schepler, and Strach.
Voting Nay: None.
Not Voting: None.
Abstaining: None.
Absent: Nadeau and Thacker.
Motion carried 5-0.
Comments on the Motion
Commissioner Doherty stated he believes there is enough space on the property to allow the
commercial and residential uses together.
Commissioner Buhrman stated he voted yes but still does not approve of combining residential and
commercial uses on one property outside of the zoning regulations that are already in place.
Chairman Schepler closed the Public Hearing regarding File No. Z-799 at 7:50 p.m.
Public Hearing: City of McHenry
File No. Z-797
Miscellaneous Text Amendments to the Zoning Ordinance
Chairman Schepler called the Public Hearing to order at 7:52 p.m. regarding File No Z-797 an application
for various text amendments to the City of McHenry municipal code, zoning and subdivision control and
development ordinances as submitted by the City of McHenry.
Chairman Schepler stated Notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Northwest Herald on August
22, 2012. A Certificate of Publication and Affidavit of Compliance with notice requirements are on file in
the City Clerk’s Office.
Deputy City Administrator Martin provided the Commission with the Staff Report regarding this matter.
For the past several months the Community Development Committee has discussed several text
amendments to the zoning ordinance. Some of the proposed amendments are due to state
requirements being changed and others are cleaning up unclear text.
Legal Descriptions: In 2011 Public Act 97-336 was signed into law. The act clarifies the requirement for
inclusion of a metes and bounds legal description in published legal notices. Currently, the City requires
legal descriptions, metes and bound or otherwise, for all public notices, including all planning and zoning
public hearings. A common street address and property index number (PIN) are required in all
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September 6, 2012
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published legal notices. Staff is recommending eliminating the requirement for metes and bounds legal
description in public hearing notices.
Assembly and Institutional Uses: In our ordinance there is a federal law which has a primary purpose to
protect religious institutions from overly excessive land use regulations, which are discriminatory
towards religious institutions. Currently our ordinance has many assembly type uses, some being
regulated differently than others, and we have institutional uses that are not defined properly in our
zoning requirements. Staff is proposing assembly use is retained and all other miscellaneous uses
currently mentioned in our assembly zoning ordinance are removed. The assembly use would strictly be
determined by the square footage of the building and will include all types of events – educational,
cultural, spiritual, social, or recreational in nature. The institutional uses will be for housing more than
twenty-five persons on a 24-hour basis, who reside in a supervised environment such as a nursing home.
Conditional Use Permits and Variances: Our ordinance allows alteration and expansion to existing
conditional use permits at the City Council level for a final decision. City Attorney McArdle recommends
this provision in the zoning ordinance be eliminated and amendments, alterations and expansion to
existing conditional use permits be required to go through the same public hearing process as any new
conditional use permit request. In addition, the zoning ordinance includes language stating “a
conditional use permit shall be revoked automatically” if the conditional use ceases operation for more
than one year or if the conditional use is not established or a building permit not obtained within one
year of the date of the ordinance granting the conditional use. Staff believes conditional use permits
and variances should be linked with the property and not the business, therefore this language should
be removed. This change would make the language for conditional use permits consistent with the
language for variances. If an amendment/expansion is required due to a new business, the applicant
will be required to go through the Planning and Zoning commission public hearing process.
Sign Ordinance Amendments: In January and February of 2012, the Community Development
Committee discussed the impending August 7, 2013 amortization deadline for registering all non-
compliant free standing signage. Staff was directed by the Committee to investigate this issue further in
order to verify the original intent of the ordinance was being met. Staff reviewed the ordinance, agenda
supplements and minutes from both Planning and Zoning and City Council meetings and completed a
comprehensive survey of existing signage. Staff has concluded it would be an undue hardship on
property owners at this time to enforce the existing registration deadline in August 2013 and believes
the best way to proceed is extend the amortization period for an additional two years. Additionally,
Attorney McArdle believes relocating the sign ordinance to the municipal code is a good idea. Zoning
ordinances address the use of land, and signs should be reviewed independently and outside the
purview of zoning.
Additionally Staff is recommending other various amendments to the sign ordinance which include
general clean up items and allow the City to be more business-friendly. A few of the recommended
changes are:
Remove the requirement for permits for commercial real estate signs if certain standards are
met;
Add a provision for right- of- way signs to be approved automatically by City Council if they meet
all of the conditions stated in the ordinance;
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September 6, 2012
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Change language for political signs to follow state law and remove the illegal language currently
in our ordinance regarding the length of time political signs are allowed; and
Address led lighting
Conditional Use Permits for Restaurants serving Alcohol: Staff believes the requirement for a conditional
use permit in this situation is unnecessary and redundant. A restaurant desiring to serve alcoholic
beverages is already required to obtain a liquor license and the license must be approved by City
Council. Staff believes this requirement is not a zoning but licensing issue, as the primary land use is a
restaurant. Staff believes the requirement should be eliminated due to the redundancy with the liquor
license ordinance in the municipal code and is also a way to promote and encourage these types of uses.
Outside Display of Merchandise: A need exists to allow businesses to use sidewalks for retail displays in
certain pedestrian-oriented areas of the City. Outside display will allow a greater opportunity for
retailers to attract motorists as well as increased pedestrian traffic, etc. during special events such as
parades, car shows, band concerts, etc. Allowing limited display year-round is a relatively minor issue
for City staff but provides an opportunity desired by local businesses for additional promotion of
product. Staff is proposing regulations be considered so the general health, safety and welfare of the
residents and businesses are maintained while allowing for outside display of merchandise. The amount
of outside display allowed would be based on the amount of business-frontage the business has.
Home Occupations: The City has regulations for home occupations in the zoning ordinance which have
not been updated since the comprehensive update to the zoning ordinance in 1986. The current
ordinance was written using detailed lists which identify uses that can or cannot be home occupations.
Staff believes a more reasonable approach is to establish guidelines that are performance-based and
focus on impacts a particular business or land use may have on adjoining properties, including noise,
signage, traffic and parking. Utilizing this method allows staff to evaluate each home occupation on its
own merit and determine if the use is appropriate for a residential area and/or surrounding
neighborhood.
Residential Multi-Family and Commercial Parking Lots: Staff is recommending amendments regarding
consolidation of requirements and elimination of redundancy in the zoning ordinance, municipal code
and subdivision control and development ordinance.
Chairman Schepler invited questions and/or comments from the Commission.
Commissioner Buhrman stated he is impressed and thanked Deputy City Administrator Martin for the
time and detail spent on the proposed amendments.
Commissioner Schepler opined the public safety concerns addressed in temporary use permits are very
important and appreciated they were included in the report.
Commissioner Doherty inquired why the nonconforming sign ordinance is being revisited now if it went
into effect in 2006. In response, Deputy City Administrator Martin stated the seven year time limit to
conform expires next year and Staff is just looking at extending time to comply due to economic
conditions. Deputy City Administrator Martin explained the sign ordinance was amended in 1986, 1995,
1997, and 2006 and at those times the big issue was height of signs. Some of the problems being
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September 6, 2012
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addressed are safety-related and others are aesthetics. He also stated that state law regulates political
signs and does not allow us to put a time limit on how long they are up.
Commissioner Strach asked about businesses that have contractor vehicles exiting and entering on a
daily basis and how lowered signs may affect their ability to operate. Deputy City Administrator Martin
responded that variances are available based on hardship for these types of situations. The fee to
request a sign variance is currently $175; if the variance is approved the business would not have to pay
the fee for non-compliance assessed with the new sign regulations.
Commissioner Doherty opined the City should look more closely and frequently at residential property
code issues rather than business property code issues and fees imposed. Deputy City Administrator
Martin stated residential code compliance is an ongoing issue that is worked on consistently but takes
time. Since we are a home rule community, Staff is looking at reducing the time period homeowners are
given to comply to code compliance requests and removing the requirement to notify homeowners by
certified mail as well as regular mail.
In response to a question regarding the cost of tickets for tall grass violations and mowing charges,
Deputy City Administrator Martin stated the first ticket is $50, the second ticket is $100, and if
compliance is still not met the issue will then go to adjudication. A homeowner cannot pay a fine to get
out of mowing – compliance must be shown. Deputy City Administrator Martin stated he believed the
cost to mow a lot is approximately $70 to $80 per lot and up to $125 for larger lots.
Commissioner Strach opined the City should increase the charges for mowing non-compliant properties.
He stated other municipalities charge $150 for the first mowing regardless of what the mowing
contractor charges the municipality.
Commissioner Strach inquired if sign restrictions could be loosened up for home occupations. He stated
real estate brokers are required by the state to display a sign and our current ordinance does not allow
signs for home-based businesses. Variances are available from the state but it is a long process and very
costly and time-consuming. Deputy City Administrator Martin responded he was unaware that was a
state requirement but he knew other municipalities allowed small signs for home occupations.
Discussion ensued regarding allowing small signs. Deputy City Administrator Martin stated a
recommendation could be made allowing for a 1 sq. ft. sign by the door or in a window when it is
required for a home occupation.
Further discussion ensued regarding contractor signs and the length of time given to businesses to
remove unsafe, abandoned or unlawful signs.
Commissioner Buhrman inquired if anything can be done to cause vacant properties and properties that
are not in city limits but are actually located in the middle of properties within city limits to follow our
zoning ordinances on signs and maintaining their properties. He suggested area communities
consolidate at the county level and request enforcement or rules be enacted for this type of issue.
Chairman Schepler opened the floor to questions and comments from the audience. There was no one
in attendance who wished to address the Commission regarding this matter. Chairman Schepler closed
the public comment portion of the hearing at 8:05 p.m.
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September 6, 2012
Page 7
Motion by Strach, seconded by Buhrman, to recommend to the City Council with regard to File No. Z-
797, approval of an application for various text amendments to the City of McHenry municipal code,
zoning and subdivision control and development ordinances, with the following conditions:
1. Consideration of increasing mowing charges to non-compliant property owners; and
2. Consideration into allowing a small 1 sq. ft. sign on windows or affixed to the property for home
occupations if required by state licensing laws
by the City of McHenry, be granted.
Voting Aye: Buhrman, Doherty, Morck, Schepler, and Strach.
Voting Nay: None.
Not Voting: None.
Abstaining: None.
Absent: Nadeau and Thacker.
Motion carried 5-0.
Chairman Schepler closed the Public Hearing regarding File No. Z-797 at 8:35 p.m.
Adjournment
Motion by Mork, seconded by Doherty, to adjourn the meeting at 8:40 p.m.
Voting Aye: Buhrman, Doherty, Morck, Schepler, and Strach.
Voting Nay: None.
Not Voting: None.
Abstaining: None.
Absent: Nadeau and Thacker.
Motion carried 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
_____________________________________
Dorothy M. Wolf, Planning & Zoning Secretary
City of McHenry