A residential development is back for 1825 Shermer Road in Northbrook called Northbrook Row by Lexington Homes, LLC.
Proposed is a revised 53-unit multi-family residential subdivision on the east side of Shermer Road along Stanley Street. The 4.69-acre property is located along a commercial industrial park and the Shermer Place subdivision, and requires zoning relief for Lexington Homes of Chicago.
Rowhomes will make up the majority of the project, said Nate Wynsma, vice president of acquisition and planning for Lexington Homes.
“We’re very excited,” Wynsma said to Pioneer Press.“It’s (Northbrook Row) a great new construction alternative to what’s there now, Shermer Place is next door. I think it’ll be a good complement to what exists today.
“We’re hoping to have a good rapport with their association and tie those two communities together, especially our sidewalks and streetscape and things,” Wynsma said, about collaborating with Shermer Place residents.
“What we’ve found with a lot of downtown development that we’ve done as a company, is, the more rooftops, the more population in the downtown, feeding the businesses, feeding that kind of 24/7 atmosphere, versus some downtowns where once business hours are over, it kind of shuts down, it gets quiet,” Wynsma added.
“It’s nice to see people out walking their dogs, and walking to and from restaurants, so I think it’s good for Northbrook, for the downtown, and for the economy as a whole. I think it’s a nice housing alternative that doesn’t exist in Northbrook right now,” Wynsma said.
On Feb. 13, the Northbrook Village Board of Trustees saw the latest renderings by Lexington Homes for Northbrook Row as a preliminary review.
The land had the single-story 106,000-square-foot Maurice sporting goods warehouse and industrial building which was demolished two years ago by Lexington Homes. The site is presently fenced, locked, and vacant.
In 2015, the Board of Trustees considered a 40-unit townhome development by The Jacobs Companies, LLC.
Then in 2022, Lexington Homes proposed a 53-unit townhome development, but returned with a modified proposal this month, still offering 53 units, and with prices for mews townhomes starting at the mid $500,000 to $600,000 range with rowhomes priced in the mid $700,000 to $800,000 price point.
Ten townhome buildings would have four to eight units each. Each townhome would have two or three bedrooms, two or three bathrooms, a private entrance, a detached or attached two-car garage with some units having a private rear yard.
Private roads are proposed plus a large retention pond on the land’s west side similar to the retention pond north at Shermer Place.
Lexington Homes is offering an alternative method of compliance for the 15% affordable housing requirement by proposing 49 market rate units which would require 7.35 affordable units as a 15 % calculation for this size development.
Lexington Homes would like to build four affordable housing units and pay a $500,000 fee-in-lieu for the rounded-up to four additional affordable units, bringing the total number of units on site to 53.
Northbrook Village Trustee Johannah K. Hebl said Northbrook Row looks, “a little too dense.
“We don’t allow increased densities when you buy your way out of affordable housing,” Hebl said. “With regard to eight (affordable housing units), I’d like to see you build it.
“I think we’ll allow density if you build it, and if you’re not going to build affordable housing or can’t for whatever financial reason, then I think that the density needs to go way down, but I prefer, and I think our board will hold you to building it,” Hebl said, also indicating, “I would like to see a little bit more green space.”
Trustee Joy U. Ebhomielen warned Lexington Homes, “I’m not the law of the land on it but you can’t choose to go with the fee in lieu, just ‘cause.”
Trustee Michelle Z. Kohler said, “If we don’t start to build places that have affordable housing, just giving us money is not going to create more affordable housing in Northbrook so we need to start building it.”
Northbrook Village President Kathryn L. Ciesla has indicated more than once publicly that private roads serving previous developments have come back to the village as problems. Private roads can be too narrow, not allowing for adequate snow storage amid plowing issues, and can be challenging for emergency vehicles to navigate. Overflow visitor parking can cause issues when residents host holiday guests and extended family for celebrations.
Trustee Hebl reminded that Northbrook Metra parking lots offer free parking during weekdays after 10 a.m. and are free on federal holidays and weekends as a parking option for motorists visiting Northbrook Row or other neighborhoods along that Shermer Road residential and retail corridor.
Ciesla said, “The history of developers asking for private roads in the board, they’ve been highly disfavored because I get that the village will never have to take over maintenance but I don’t know that that’s a promise that anybody can reasonably make.”
About the affordable housing fee in lieu of actual construction of four units, “I want to know why they (Lexington) can’t build them,” Ciesla said.
After the meeting, Wynsma said the affordable housing fee in lieu offer is not unreasonable and would give the village freedom to work with affordable housing experts who might maximize affording housing dollars with subsidies by collaborating with government agencies.
“That fee in lieu then they can leverage to provide detached single-family homes or other types of housing throughout Northbrook,” Wynsma said. “That would be my concern, is, do we end up with affordable housing in only new construction communities and nowhere else?”
Trustees opted to move the Northbrook Row proposal to a joint meeting between the Northbrook Plan Commission and the Board of Trustees but Lexington Homes would first have to formally apply.
OTHER BOARD OF TRUSTEES NEWS
The village is transferring $2 million to the police and firefighters’ pension funds ($1 million to each fund) to reduce unfunded liabilities.
Also, two new businesses are coming to Northbrook. No opening dates are known but expect to see Market Fresh grocery at 163 Skokie Blvd. and Barnes & Noble bookstore at 45 Skokie Blvd.
Residents were also reminded to bring their own reusable bags to avoid paying the 10-cent single-use bag tax. The bag tax came into effect last Jan. 1 at larger Northbrook retail outlets.
Karie Angell Luc is a freelancer for Pioneer Press.
