Plans to build rowhouses at the northwest corner of Benton Avenue and Main Street in downtown Naperville will proceed despite pushback from some neighbors over the project’s height and density.
Benton + Main, a development proposed by M/I Homes of Chicago, calls for 11 rowhomes to built on a little more than three-quarters of an acre of land. Property owner Calvary Temple Church of Naperville demolished a church and two homes on the site before signing a contract to sell the property.
The development, located in a transitional use zoning district area and calling for four duplex and seven townhome units, won Naperville City Council approval at its meeting last week.
Russ Whitaker, an attorney representing M/I Homes, said the property “sits at the northern edge of downtown Naperville, where the (city’s) comprehensive plan explicitly contemplates transition from core commercial district to supporting higher density residential uses.”
As part of the plan submitted to the city, M/I Homes requested municipal code variances on height, density, percentage of occupied rear yard, streetscape and setback standards.
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Some residents took issue with the requested deviations.
“The neighborhood is not asking for a cancellation of the project, just changes to the design to bring it in line with beauty qualifications and transitional use zoning,” said Chris Carlsen, a Franklin Avenue resident who criticized the development for “too many units on too small a site.”
“The (transitional) zoning already relaxes residential standards and was meant to allow redevelopment without sweeping waivers or repeated hearings such as this,” Carlsen said. “Targeted adjustments tied to clear public benefit can earn a swift yes. Broad overreach like this triggers ongoing reviews and public opposition.”
One request was to increase the permissible building height from 35 feet to 46 feet, which drew criticism from residents who would be living near the property.
“As proposed, my family would be faced with a wall 46 feet high,” North Main Street resident Brian Davis said. Additionally, he said, the project’s proposed setback would be 11 feet from his property line.
“I do not want neighbors peering down on top of us,” Davis said.
In defense of the development, Whitaker said Benton + Main is in line with what city officials and the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission envisioned for the area.
“They looked at this area and they said it looks more like Benton Terrace than it does the single-family homes,” Whitaker said, referring to the nearby Benton Terrace Condominiums. “I think they looked at the area and they said there’s a bit of an amalgamation of uses, and it’s directly adjacent to a developing downtown district that is very large in scale, massive buildings.”
Neighbors also decried the project’s lack of green space and requested removing one midblock unit to make room for a park space amenity. Whitaker said adding such green space was found to not be feasible with the existing site.
“This is eight tenths of an acre. It is a constrained site. It’s not a square site. And by virtue of it not being a square site, that’s driving the number of deviations,” Whitaker said.
Councilman Patrick Kelly said seeing nearby housing projects like the Benton Terrace Condominiums, which is similar to Benton + Main, swung his vote.
“I just struggle with telling the developer they’ve got to cut a unit when there’s a building right across the street that’s larger than what they’re suggesting height wise,” Kelly said.
Councilman Ian Holzhauer praised the development’s proximity to the Metra station.
“This is very walkable to the No. 2 most used Metra station in Chicagoland,” Holzhauer said. “Adding homes in a transit friendly, walkable area near downtown tends to bring residents who are walking more places, using their cars less, more connected to the neighborhood on foot, patronizing local shops and restaurants, making our downtown more vibrant.”