A West Chicago developer has asked the city of Geneva to proceed with its application to build 94 homes on a former girls school site, despite the odds that the project will be rejected.
If the Geneva City Council does reject the proposed Fox Run subdivision, as recommended by the staff and the Plan Commission, Geneva’s rules would prohibit the developer from submitting a similar application for at least a year.
That will give the city enough time to change the zoning on the site from residential to office, which is what the city was in the process of doing when the project was proposed, according to Community Development Director Michael Donahue.
“You have to look at legislative intent,” Donahue said. “The R-1 zoning in place now was never instituted to allow the construction of homes.”
The school, which closed in the ’80s, operated with a special use permit under the residential zoning category. But the city’s comprehensive plan shows the 50 acres at Illinois Highway 25 and the Chicago and North Western railroad tracks as office/research uses.
Donahue acknowledged the whole issue may end up in court. While Airhart Construction is proposing to develop the parcel, the property is still owned by Waste Management of Illinois Inc., with which Geneva is already embroiled in a legal battle over neighboring Settler’s Hill Landfill.
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The city is also considering using at least half of the site to expand its wastewater treatment operation, currently west of Illinois 25. The city would either have to negotiate with the landowner or take the property through condemnation.