Citing concerns about population density and engineering, New Lenox trustees agreed Tuesday to file a legal objection to a plan to build senior citizen housing in unincorporated Will County.
The landowner is seeking a rezoning to residential use from agricultural and a special use permit to allow the construction of an assisted living center.
The 5 acres of land at 22757 Cedar Rd. are in an area earmarked for low-density residential development by New Lenox’s comprehensive plan.
“This is a hard one,” said Plan Commission Chairman Cory Lund. “There is a perceived need for housing for low-income senior citizens,” he said, but there are questions about the suitability of the property for that purpose.
The proposed 60 housing units on 5 acres would be too high a population density, and the drainage plan may be inadequate, Lund said.
The open-ended nature of a special use permit worried Mayor Mike Smith and Trustee Dave Batson. If the assisted living project were to falter, a new owner could be empowered to build something less desirable on the site, they said.