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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/28/2001 ZBA minutes 12-2001 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS CASE NO. ZBA-12-2001 Hearing Date: June 28, 2001 PETITIONER: Steve and Janice Sokolik 600 W. Kensington Rd. PUBLICATION DATE: June 13, 2001 Journal/Topics REQUEST: Conditional Use to allow construction of a circular driveway MEMBERS PRESENT: Hal E~nger Leo Floros Richard Rogers Arlene Suracek, Chairperson MEMBERS ABSENT: Merrill Co,ten Keith Youngquist STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Judy Counolly, AICP, Senior Planner Mike Blue, AICP, Community Development Deputy Director INTERESTED PARTIES: Steve & Janice Sokolik Chairperson Arlene Juracek called the meeting to order at 7:47 p.m. The minutes of the May 24, 2001 meeting were approved 4-0. At 8:04 p.m., Ms. Juracek introduced Case No. ZBA-12-01, a request for a Conditional Use to allow a circular drive. Judy Connolly, Senior Planner, introduced the staff memorandum for the case. The subject property is located at the northeast comer of Prospect Manor and Kensington Road. Ms. Connolly said that this area of Mount Prospect does not have curbs or sidewalks and the street is 22-feet wide, compared to "improved streets" that measure closer to 27' wide. The home has two driveways, which are located along and accessed from Prospect Manor. The previous property owner converted the attached garage to living space and constructed a detached garage with a new driveway. The Village did not requ/re the property owner to remove the original driveway when the new driveway was completed. Current code requirements permit only one driveway. The current property owners use both driveways and would like to link the two driveways together and create a circular driveway to afford a safe entrance onto Prospect Manor. There is a tree and concrete blocks in a portion of the area that the petitioner would like to pave. The drive would be designed in a way that preserves the tree. Ms. Connolly explained that, in order to approve the request, standards for a Conditional Use must be met. The standards listed in the Zoning Ordinance relate to the impact of the request on public health, safety, and general welfare; if the request will adversely impact other properties and so forth. Staff reviewed the petitioners' plat of survey and site plan, visited the site, and found that the subject property is a 12,000 square foot parcel developed with a single family home with 2 driveways along Prospect Manor, which is classified as a local street. To clarify, a local street is defined as a street "intended to serve only vehicle trips generated by land use abutting the street and the function of this type of street is local access within a neighborhood". Data supplied by the Record's Division of the Village's Police Department indicates that, within the last six months, there were 3 driving complaints (erratic driving, speeding), 8 parking complaints (blocked driveways, vehicles blocking the street, etc.), and 2 accidents without injuries. In addition, the Police Department set-up Traffic Enforcement Detail three times this year. While Traffic Enforcement Detail is not unusual for this particular area because of its proximity to major arterial roads, 3 times in 6 months is not typical for a local street. The Engineering Division confirmed that the Village does not plan to install curbs, gutters, and sidewalks in this neighborhood and, while they don't object to the requested circular drive, they note that high traffic volumes occur during peak traffic hours on certain days. oning Board of Appeals ZBA- 12-2001 Arlene Juracek, Chairperson Page 2 Ms. Cormolly evaluated the request with respect to the standards listed in the Zoning Ordinance and said the proposed circular driveway would not have an adverse effect on the neighborhood. In this case, the petitioner is seeking a circular drive to provide a safe entry onto Prospect Manor, a heavily traveled local street. Village records indicate that there are traffic issues in the neighborhood. The circular driveway would not have a negative impact on the adjacent area, utility provision or public streets. The essential character of the neighborhood would not be affected by the proposed Conditional Use, nor would it have any significant effect on the public welfare. Ms. Connolly said that, based on these findings, staff recommends that the ZBA make a recommendation to the Village Board to approve a Conditional Use for a circular driveway for the residence at 600 W. Kensington Road, Case No. ZBA-12-01. The Village Board's decision is final for this case. Ms. Juracek asked Ms. Connolly if public notice had been given and Ms. Connolly said yes. Steve Sokolik was sworn in and testified he wanted to attach his two separate driveways into a circular driveway so could pull forward into Prospect Manor instead of backing into it. He said the road continually gets busier and the cars are going faster. He said his elderly neighbors pull into his driveway to back into theirs. Mr. Sokolik said the neighborhood residents had tried to get the street closed years ago due to cars on Kensington taking a short cut through their street but the Village could not close it because emergency vehicles needed to access the street. At 8:16, Chairperson Juracek closed the public hearing and asked for discussion from the Zoning Board members Hal Ettinger said that allowing this circular driveway would be a short-term-fix, rather than addressing the real issues. Ms. Juracek pointed out that the whole issue was much larger and the Village was grappling with ways to handle the problem, but meanwhile, the petitioner had two existing driveways and was doing the best he could by connecting them into a circular drive. Mr. Floros said this request was a confined, localized attempt to remedy an existing situation. At 8:23, Richard Rogers moved to make a recommendation to the Village Board to approve a Conditional Use for Case No. ZBA-12-01, a request to allow construction of a circular driveway at 600 W. Kensington Road. Leo Floros seconded the motion. UPON ROLL CALL: AYES: Floros, Ettinger, and Juracek NAYS: Rogers Motion was approved 3-0. At 10:10 p.m., after hearing four more cases, Richard Rogers made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Leo Floros. The motion was approved by a voice vote and the meeting was adjourned. Barbara Swiatek, Planning Secretary Judy Cormolly, Senior Planner