The planned redevelopment of Glencoe’s Hoover Estate took a big step forward after an updated proposal won the support of the village’s Plan Commission.
Following about six hours of testimony spread over two video conference meetings on July 15 and 22, commissioners unanimously approved the final plat of subdivision presented by Glencoe Developers LLC on behalf of an ownership team known as Hoover Owners LLC.
The developers envision transforming the 12.2-acre parcel at 1801 Green Bay Road into a residential subdivision with 29 lots of detached, single-family homes with three and four bedrooms. The houses would be between 2,500 and 4,000 square feet with a first-floor primary bedroom. Exterior landscape maintenance would be provided by a homeowners association.
The homes will be part on a road circling an approximate 3/4-acre preserve, noted Larry DiVito, Director of Development for Glencoe Developers LLC.
Last year, the Plan Commission and Village Board approved a preliminary plat with conditions for the developers to address, notably stormwater management and how the construction of the new homes would affect the surrounding area.
After the lengthy testimony in the two meetings, which had over 30 public comments read aloud, commissioners signed off on the updated plan featuring changes to sidewalks, lighting, entry features, landscaping and a revised stormwater detention system.
“We’ve done the very best we could to balance the rights of the applicant who bought the property and relied on the existing village codes and to take everything we had in the village code to as far degree as we could to protect the residents in the area,” said Plan Commission Chairman Bruce Huvard.
Under the updated plan, stormwater will discharge at the southeast corner into the Terrace Court Basin storm sewer via a new pipe installed in an easement at 1188 Carol Lane. There will also be a second discharge of water to the nearby Turnbull Woods Forest Preserve.
The detention system is also designed to accommodate updated rainfall data projections set forth in a new state study and will control the amount of runoff into adjacent properties. There will also be a new connection into a storm sewer on Terrace Court, according to the plans presented.
After the July 15 meeting, staff and representatives of the developers met with an engineer retained by some of the neighbors to further explore stormwater issues, which gained additional interest following an intense storm on May 23.
Eileen O’ Halloran, one of the neighbors, hoped additional information on flooding prevention would be provided by the stakeholders as the process moves forward.
“We appreciated having our comments heard and believe there are many steps to go. We believe there is still a lot of information and data to be confirmed to insure there will not be any adverse effects in terms of storm water and sanitation toward the Carol/Terrace Court Basin,” O’ Halloran said after the meeting. “All along, we just wanted to make sure the 1801 Green Bay Road subdivision does not adversely affect the other residents of Glencoe.”
Other updated features to the plan include an emergency access route, five-foot sidewalks and traffic configurations aligning Westley and Estates roads.
The plan also now calls for removing 88 existing trees, but 189 trees are set to be planted sometime in the future, according to staff.
Meanwhile, the developers are no longer asking for signage at the entrance just off Green Bay Road.
Village staff did recommend approval of the updated plans.
“It is an important step. We are now on to the Village Board, and the process is not done yet,” DiVito said. “I am hopeful (it will) be approved and I hope the Village Board members heard the message our plan will improve the stormwater issues the neighborhood is facing.”
The Village Board is scheduled to take up the matter at their Aug. 20 meeting.
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If the developers receive approval, they still need to acquire permits from a series of other government agencies including the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
The estate, which DiVito believes was constructed around 1915, was owned by the family of H. Earl Hoover, the nephew of the vacuum company’s founder, W.H. Hoover, according to the village.
To accommodate the new homes, the developers plan to remove the existing structures on the estate, but DiVito is not optimistic the manor house can be preserved.
“We are exploring all options to keep the manor house, but nothing has made sense yet,” DiVito said.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter.