Submitted By
Tammie Grossman, Development Customer Services Director
Reviewed By
LKS
Agenda Item Title
Title
(*) Concur with the Plan Commission’s Recommendation and Adopt an Ordinance Amending Village of Oak Park Park Ordinance Number 199-O-52 Titled “Ordinance Amending the Oak Park Zoning Ordinance and Granting a Special Use Permit (Oak Park Hospital)”
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Overview
Overview
Rush Oak Park Hosptial is requesting an amendment to Ordinance 1999-O-52 to modify language relative to restrictions regarding 533 Wenonah Avenue as a buffer to 535 Wenonah Avenue, zoning of 535 Wenonah Avenue and an extension of the approved public alley vacation. (Companion Agenda Items: ORD 17-265; Rezoning of 535 Wenonah Avenue & ORD 17-266; Vacation of Remaining portion of North-South Alley behind 535 Wenonah Avenue)
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Recommendation
Recommendation
The Plan Commission unanimously recommends approval of this application.
Body
Staff Recommendation
Staff supports the Plan Commission’s recommendation.
Fiscal Impact
N/A.
Background
In 1999 the Village Board approved a Special Use permit to allow the construction of a medical office building at 620 South Maple Avenue and ancillary surface parking lots. As part of that approval, the applicant requested the construction of surface parking lots on the 600 block of South Maple Avenue, 600 block of Wisconsin Avenue and the 500 block of Wenonah Avenue with the exception of those parcels owned by the Hospital and located at 622 South Maple Avenue, 621 Wisconsin Avenue and 533 Wenonah Avenue. The hospital also asked for the vacation of the public alley abutting the west side of the 500 block of Wenonah except for that portion abutting 535 Wenonah (which was privately owned at the time). Ordinance 1999-O-52 states that 533 Wenonah, which was (and is currently) owned by the hospital, shall be reserved in perpetuity for single family residential purposes “unless” a change is specifically approved by the President and Board of Trustees after a public hearing. The reason for this requirement was to ensure 533 Wenonah Avenue remains as a residential building buffer between the privately owned 535 Wenonah Avenue and the hospital’s proposed surface parking lot. Recently, the hospital was able to acquire 535 Wenonah and wishes to expand the existing parking lot by razing both houses at 533 and 535 Wenonah Avenue. With the sale of 535 Wenonah Avenue to Rush Oak Park Hospital, the protection from the hospital’s surface parking lot is no longer necessary. In order for the restriction to be removed, Ordinance 1999-O-52 must be amended. Please note: The parking lot extension will maintain the existing 20 foot wide landscape buffer along Wenonah Avenue and the Hospital will provide a 20 foot wide landscape buffer along Monroe Avenue between the sidewalk (ROW) and parking lot’s edge. The current alley access drive from Monroe Avenue will be removed and replaced with green parkway.
Under Ordinance 1999-O-52, the Village reclassified certain properties from Single Family residential zoning districts to Hospital zoning districts which allowed the development of hospital-related surface parking lots and the medical office building at 620 South Maple Avenue. The property located at 535 Wenonah Avenue was not included in the rezoning request as it was privately owned at the time. Now that the hospital owns this property, they wish to rezone it to the H-Hospital zoning district in order to allow for an expansion of their existing surface parking lot as allowed by-right within the H-Hospital zoning district. The expansion of the surface parking lot would require the razing of 533 and 535 Wenonah Avenue.
Alternatives
Approve the application as presented and recommended by the Plan Commission.
Deny the application.
Previous Board Action
The Village Board referred this application to the Plan Commission for public hearing at their July 17, 2017 meeting.
Citizen Advisory Commission Action
The Plan Commission reviewed this request and recommends approval with no conditions. There were no public comments for this application. While the plan commission fully supports this application, they did suggest to the applicant that there may be a better parking lot design then what was proposed. They asked the applicant to work with staff on the parking lot design.
Anticipated Future Actions/Commitments
N/A.
Intergovernmental Cooperation Opportunities
Zoning and land use matters are unique to Village government within the corporate limits of Oak Park and therefore, intergovernmental cooperation opportunities do not exist.
Performance Management (MAP) Alignment
A Governance Priority for the Development Customer Services Department is Land Use Regulations.