Oswego Village President Ryan Kauffman recently cast the tie-breaking vote in support of a concept plan for a 345-unit residential development.
Representatives of The Drake Group are proposing to build 219 rental townhome units and 126 detached single-family homes on about 80 acres of vacant land south of Wolf’s Crossing Road and east of Douglas Road in an unincorporated part of Kendall County.
Voting in favor of the plan on Nov. 28 were Oswego Trustees Jennifer Jones Sinnott, Tom Guist and Andrew Torres. Voting the other way were Trustees Kit Kuhrt, Karin McCarthy-Lange and Karen Novy. Kauffman’s vote in favor means the concept plan was approved.
If the petitioner moves forward with the project, they would submit an application for annexation, rezoning and subdivision which would require a public hearing at the Planning and Zoning Commission and review by the Village Board, officials said.
The village’s Planning and Zoning Commission in October forwarded a positive recommendation on the project to village trustees. However, the motion included a request to reduce the density of the overall project.
Some Oswego trustees had concerns with the project’s density and the rental townhomes in the proposed project.
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“I like the looks of the townhomes. I have an issue with them being rentals,” Novy said.
There are already rentals on Wolf’s Crossing Road, she said.
“I would like to see this be more owner-occupied properties versus rentals,” Novy said.
Carrie Hansen, director of Planning and Government Services for Schoppe Design Associates of Oswego, on behalf of the developer, said the purpose of the concept plan review was to “obtain high level and informal input” from both the Village Board and the Planning and Zoning Commission.
“The review is done prior to considerable time and expense on detailed plans,” Hansen told trustees in the presentation.
The review process provides a forum for people to express views regarding the potential development as well.
“Our project home density is comparable to other approved and constructed projects in Oswego and it a typical townhome density,” Hansen said in her closing summary statement.
Based on the input, the applicant can decide whether or not to pursue the project, she said.
Hansen referenced the village’s 2015 Comprehensive Plan and housing analysis in her presentation. From 2000 to 2014, the most significant growth was the Baby Boomer generation in their family years which drove growth and single-family homes, she said.
She also noted projections in the village plan. Hansen said “key demographic shifts will drive the make-up of various lifestyles,” she said.
She said the Comprehensive Plan included an analysis that projected a “greater diversity” of housing would be needed to meet the needs of the public in Oswego in the future.
This is the developer’s first proposal in Oswego.
“Our proposal represents a fresh approach to development with elevated design quality and the proposed plan meets the objectives and conforms to the village’s Comprehensive Plan and Strategic Plan,” Hansen said.
Tom Drake, president of The Drake Group, said the firm is in the process of evaluating factors that go into the cost component for the proposed homes and townhomes.
“Our target is to provide elevated design and superior quality that will be at the upper range,” Drake said.
The project is estimated to generate 144 elementary and 52 high school students. The proposed development would be in the attendance boundaries of Southbury Elementary, Murphy Junior High and Oswego East High School, the representatives said.
“One of the primary markets is millennials,” Drake said.
This group is interested in rental properties and “now it’s not a question of desire, it’s a desire of need,” he said. “They want to be in new housing and the rental rates are significantly lower than they would be for a mortgage payment.”
Some trustees still have concerns with the density of the project.
“I do have a problem with your high density,” Kuhrt said. “It’s a lot townhomes you are trying to cram in there. They are beautiful and upscale but the problem is residents don’t want to see more high-density crammed along Wolf’s Crossing. That’s where we are getting a lot of pushback.”
McCarthy-Lange said she would prefer to see a 50/50 ratio of townhomes to single-family homes in the development.
Jones Sinnott in her support for the development said she is thinking of “all of the dynamics of the people who call Oswego home.”
“We need to look at the entire community and the people who make up this community as we make a decision,” she said.
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Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.