The Naperville City Council this week annexed a 39,069-square-foot property into the city’s northern boundary to accommodate a new 10-unit town home development.
The site, previously part of unincorporated DuPage County, is at the northeast corner of Mill Street and Bauer Road. The proposed development, put forward by property owner Mill & Bauer, has been under discussion since June.
In addition to the annexation, the developers Tuesday were granted rezoning and some leeway on density despite opposition from a handful of neighboring property owners.
Resident Mark Hinterlong urged members to nix Mill & Bauer’s proposal.
“Ten two-story town homes do not fit the character of our neighborhood,” which is primarily made up of single-family homes,” Hinterlong said. “(That’s) the essential character of our neighborhood.”
Other nearby property owners took issue with the development’s aesthetics and raised concerns about the prospect of more congestion on Bauer — a two-lane road — and setting a precedent for future development in the area.
Mill & Bauer initially presented its plans at Naperville Planning and Zoning Commission meeting in June, where residents cited problems with traffic, density, rezoning, building design, parking, snow removal and garbage pickup.
After Mill & Bauer made alterations to the original plans, including a reduction in the number of units from 12 to 10 and an increase in the number of guest parking spaces, the project narrowly won commission approval with a 5-4 vote.
Hinterlong said he expected the council discussion this week to echo the debate seen at the commission level.
“I thought there might have been more support for us from the City Council, but there was none,” he said. “I thought it might have been closer, like the Planning and Zoning Commission … but obviously it wasn’t.”
The council approved three separate items that will allow Mill & Bauer’s proposal to move ahead: the property annexation, on an 8-1 vote; a zoning designation to transitional use, on an 8-1 vote; and a density variance, on a 7-2 vote.
The last item allows Mill & Bauer to build a slightly denser development than what is permitted in Naperville Municipal Code.
Councilman Paul Leong cast the lone dissenting vote on all three requests. Councilman Patrick Kelly joined Leong in voting against the density variance, noting he didn’t “see any affordable housing benefit to the city or other things that we’ve talked about over the last couple of years of why and when and for what reasons we would grant density variances.”
The Mill & Bauer town homes are expected to rent for $3,500 a month per unit.
Nine-figure budget approved
Council members also approved the 2024 budget Tuesday, unanimously signing off on the $613,742,548 spending plan after several months of budget workshops and review.
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The big takeaway is Naperville plans to improve services next year without imposing new costs on taxpayers. Other highlights include an expansive, $150.4 million capital improvement plan and the hiring of 18 new full-time employees.