Mateusz Janik
NORMAL -- A new luxury apartment development will be coming to northeast Normal despite complaints and concerns from neighbors.
The Normal Town Council voted unanimously Monday to rezone almost 20 acres to allow for the development of more than 250 apartments and townhomes at the corner of Beech Street and Shelbourne Drive.
Councilmember Kathleen Lorenz was not in attendance.
The Essex residential development comprises a total of 252 residential units, mostly with two- and three-bedroom floor plans. There would be 228 apartment units across 12 buildings and 24 townhouse units across six buildings.
Although the Normal Planning Commission suggested that the planned four buildings along Captains Circle be limited to two stories during its May 9 meeting, the town staff proposed that the developer stay with the original three-story design.
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About 16 public commenters cited concerns about property values possibly declining, traffic, neighborhood safety, and noise and light pollution.
Prior to the council approving the development, a resident stood and interrupted council action to ask whether the town considered the impact on local schools, claiming that there would be no room for the possible increase in students. He was asked to leave after he spoke.
Shortly after the council voted, the crowd of about 50 residents collectively left the chambers.
Normal Mayor Chris Koos said that when he first stepped onto the council, he remembered the community experiencing a lot of growth and hearing a lot the same concerns expressed back then.
Koos said the town is experiencing a housing shortage, and single-family housing developers are having a difficult time building homes in the community at affordable prices.
"People were afraid of what they considered the unknown and that's why it's critical that our town staff holds any developer that comes to us with a project to the standards to ensure that doesn't happen," Koos said.
"We have to be able to let people come into this community," he added. "We need to grow the stock of housing so that we're making it more affordable, and that's the way to do it, is to have more housing."
The developer and prospective buyer of the property, Worthington LLC -- which is managed by Young America Realty -- proposed rezoning 2.5 acres at the west end of Vanderbilt Drive from R-1B (single family residential) to R-2 (mixed residence) and the remaining 17 acres to R-3A (medium density multifamily).
The property is being sold by Collie Ridge LLC, which is managed by local developer Don Franke.
Andy Netzer, president and managing broker at Young America Realty, said he and others spoke with residents and made two changes to the development that eliminate vehicle access to the cul-de-sac along Vanderbilt Drive and platted a single-family home adjacent to the final existing home on Vanderbilt.
"For 25 years, this property has been in stalemate and it could continue indefinitely as farmland but I don't think that's ideal for Normal and that is not what the (town's) comprehensive plan calls for," Netzer said. "The plan we're proposing meets the code for the proposed zoning with exception of the connection to Vanderbilt, which I think everybody in the room supports that waiver."
Council member Rory Roberge asked whether these units will be accessible to people working at or looking to work at Rivian Automotive or State Farm.
Netzer said he envisions these to be "high end" apartments that will create affordable options elsewhere, but he does not expect the average Rivian worker to be the target market.
The preliminary unit development plan proposes variances that will allow for three-story buildings and extend the transitional setback limit for properties adjacent to rear yards from 30 feet to 45 feet.
A traffic study also showed there is no need to improve the intersection at Beech Street and Shelbourne Drive, and there will be no significant cross traffic between the Essex and Collie Ridge subdivisions.
All buildings will feature composite wood siding and trim, balconies with decorative railings, awnings, planter boxes, decorative wall lights, brick chimneys and architectural shingles, according to town documents. The apartments will feature second- and third-floor enclosed bridges with balconies, creating an open-air pass-through for pedestrian access.
The plan proposes a 40% spread of green space throughout the development with a landscaped boulevard leading up to the center of the development, green space along the east and north property lines, landscaping around all apartment buildings and a landscaped buffer along Beech Street.
There will be two detention basins designed as amenities with the north area being dry and available for various recreational activities and the south area designed to be fishable with an appropriate depth, native plants, fishing perch, seating and a trail.
A total of 504 parking spots are proposed, which is about two parking spots for each unit, or 456 parking spaces for the apartment units and 48 spaces for the townhomes.
Carden Springs
In other action, the council approved additional amendments and final development plans for the Carden Springs development, which will be on 36 acres at the northwest corner of Beech Street and Towanda Avenue.
The development will feature 477 units with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and townhomes across 29 garden-style buildings. These will include a two-story clubhouse, seven two-story buildings and 21 three-story buildings, some of which will have attached garages.
The initial amendments were approved by the council in October 2024, to waive some fees and eliminate some construction requirements to help the developer secure financing.
The additional amendments include requiring a certificate of occupancy for all structures, plotting the property in two phases and deferring park land and school land fees in the same manner as the rest of development fees.
If the project is substantially completed by Dec. 31, 2028, 50% of the park land fee and 100% of the school land fee would be due 30 days later.
The housing development plans were previously approved by the council in January 2023, and the initial annexation agreement followed in April 2023.
The Bridge
The council also voted in support of a shelter village at 104 E. Oakland Ave. in Bloomington planned by Home Sweet Home Ministries called "The Bridge."
The project was endorsed by the Bloomington City Council on May 13 and construction could being in June, with the shelters being finished by November.
The gated community would be staffed 24 hours a day and contain furnished single- and double-occupancy units, all with electricity and climate controlled, that would be anywhere from 80 to 100 square feet. At the center of the lot would be a clubhouse with full bathrooms and showers.
The homeless encampment near Sugar Creek off of South Center Street in south Normal will be disbanded by June 1 for two significant sewer projects by the Bloomington-Normal Water Reclamation District.
Multiple parcels owned by BNWRD located adjacent to Sugar Creek and the encampment contain critical sewer infrastructure that moves sewage from urban areas to the wastewater treatment facility on Oakland Avenue.
In addition, the council:
Awarded the bid for the Hovey Avenue water service relocation project to George Gildner Inc. for $1,553,000
Awarded a contract to Denler Inc. for the 2025 crack and joint filling project for $21,475
Authorized a contact with Donelson Construction Company LLC for a pilot project application of PressurePave pavement preservation for $222,423
Awarded a contract to Stark Excavation Inc. for the Chippewa Street improvements project for $938,740
Authorized a contract with Balcones Midwest LLC for the processing of recycled materials
Authorized a joint agreement with the City of Bloomington and the Ecology Action Center for an energy efficiency program
Authorized a petition to annex town-owned properties into the Bloomington-Normal Water Reclamation District.
Contact Mateusz Janik at (309) 820-3234. Follow Mateusz on Twitter:@mjanik99
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