Trustees this week approved a plan to build two 30,588-square-foot office buildings in Frankfort if the developer addresses traffic concerns.
Homeowners have said that adding the office centers to one already operating in the commercial section of the upscale Abbey Woods subdivision will only add to problems getting on to busy La Grange Road.
The Abbey Woods property was zoned for both business and residential use in 1988, but resident Myron Brick questioned why earlier development agreements can’t be modified as circumstances change.
Brick said the village’s Traffic Advisory Committee recommendations for easing the neighborhood’s traffic woes are flawed. He said adding a left turn lane on Abbey Drive might be the best solution to avoid traffic tie-ups and the dangers posed by a “blind spot” at the subdivision’s clock tower.
Many properties combine commercial uses on main roads with residential uses on the smaller streets, Trustee Cindy Heath said. “The project has been in the hands of the developer for nearly 20 years. We can’t take it away,” Heath said.
“It’s a free enterprise issue,” Mayor Jim Holland added. “But we do have concerns.”
Trustee Todd Morgan said the board is “handcuffed legally” by the 1988 zoning decision.
One resident, Elaine Brickman, complained that the height of the buildings exceed the standard 35 feet allowed and they might join a collection of empty commercial buildings in the region.
But Bill Fetherling of GV Designer Homes said he has almost a full list of prospective tenants for one building. Many professional offices want an upscale location and are attracted by the project’s architecture, underground parking and elevators, Fetherling said.
The vote to approve the buildings was conditional upon the developer working with residents to address traffic problems, most likely with a left-turn lane and the possible widening of Abbey Drive and any signs needed for safety.
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