Primrose Schools, a national early childhood education franchise, want to build a 13,596-square-foot facility at 471 E. 75th St., according to plans that will be reviewed Wednesday night by the Naperville Planning and Zoning Commission.
The venture requires two deviations from municipal code to move forward, both of which will require Naperville City Council approval.
If the project proceeds, it would be Primrose’s second location in Naperville. The first is at 2915 Reflection Drive in Naperville Crossings.
The school is to be built on a 1.5-acre lot zoned for office, commercial and institutional use and allows for day care centers. It will include five fenced-in play areas. A former veterinary clinic on the site would be razed, according to a city staff report.
However, Primrose requires parking and landscaping variances before construction can begin.
The school is requesting a reduction in required parking spaces from 54 to 44. A parking study done by the company compared the city’s parking requirements with current parking demand and occupancy at the Primrose location on Reflection Drive. It found that peak demand is 29 spaces during morning hours.
Because the existing center is 985 square feet smaller than the proposed 75th Street facility, the study estimated the new center would need about 33 spaces to meet peak demand — a position with which city staff agreed.
Primrose also wants the city to waive the requirement that a barrier be built between the school’s land and the adjoining residential area because there’s already a 6-foot privacy fence on the adjacent property. Should that fence be removed, Primrose has agreed to comply with a staff condition that it install fence or wall within 180 days of the fence’s removal, documents said.
Several community members have voiced their opposition to Primrose’s proposed center in letters submitted to the commission. Among their concerns are increased traffic on Oxford Lane, which runs perpendicular to 75th Street, and tree removal.
A majority of the trees on the site — about 29 in all — are to be removed as part of the project, said Anna Franco, a Naperville community planner for the city. However, Primrose proposes planting 25 new “shade” trees on the land, she said.
Primrose Schools has more than 525 locations nationwide. Each is independently owned and operated by franchise owners, according to the company.
In a January news release, Primrose announced it was experiencing “remarkable growth.” After opening 21 new schools in 2024, another 40 locations are slated to open this year and more than 200 schools are in the development pipeline, the release said.
“We’re inspired by the growing interest from developers and brokers who understand the lasting value that early education and child care services bring to new projects and communities at large,” Nick Koros, chief development officer of Primrose Schools, said in the release.