The Lake Zurich mayor and board of trustees kicked a proposed subdivision plan back to developers so they can work out a schedule for home building.
Developers Mike Naumowicz and Kirk Rustman had asked the board to approve a plan to reduce the lot size at the Meadow Wood East Residential Subdivision and increase proposed houses from 9 lots to 15 homes. The initial plans for the nine lots have already been approved, but the new plans, which would shrink from 15,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet, need trustee approval.
However, the pair are land developers and not builders and their plan had been to sell the lots and allow the lot owners to build their homes.
However, trustees seemed skeptical of approving a plan without seeing housing designs and getting some idea of a timetable for construction. Trustees said they were concerned the homes might not fit in aesthetically with surrounding homes near Manchester Road and that lots could remain empty or that construction could continue for years into the future.
Even so, trustees did not want to outright reject the developers’ bid, so Mayor Tom Poynton asked Rustman, who appeared before the board, to return in February with building contractors to talk about a building plan.
Rustman agreed to the terms and noted he’s already in discussions with a home developer. He had also already updated his subdivision plans in line with Planning and Zoning Commission requests to improve stormwater management and add landscape buffering to adjacent developments.
Rustman also noted to the board he’d talked with area neighbors and assured them he planned to keep his development in line with the existing developments.
“(It will be) very similar to the Manchester area but with more updated materials,” Rustman said, showing the board an artist’s rendering of his ideas.
But board members pointed out the houses do not exist yet and he’s not a builder anyway.
“I will not be voting for this this evening, but I wanted to give you my reasons,” explained Trustee Greg Weider. “For me, this is not a housing project. We had a picture of houses but you’re not proposing houses, you’re proposing home sites. … These sites are going to be developed and they’re going to be developed in the open market and people will be able to build whatever they want to build … I don’t know that there’s going to be any continuity to the current subdivision. I also don’t know if those lots are going to sit vacant for one month or for 65 months. … Just up the street, we had a development that sat vacant for four years. So I’m concerned with, if it was a housing project with a beginning and an end, I might feel a little more comfortable with that, but there seems to be some unanswered questions and I’m just not comfortable with that.”
The rest of the board, including the mayor, agreed with Weider and Mayor Poynton suggested Rustman return with a home builder.
“Would it be possible to table this approval until you get the builder on board to build the lots,” Poynton asked Rustman. “Because if you get a no vote tonight, what are the implications of a no vote? A no vote means you have to wait two years to come back.”
Rustman agreed to wait a month, talk to a builder, and return. However, he did point out he could still develop the nine lots as they are already approved for development.
Jesse Wright is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
