McHenry County Blog

The Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission gave preliminary approval to Metra’s proposed Ridgefield Train Station, but conditioned it on making multi-million dollar road improvements recommended by city engineering firm Patrick Engineering.

The improvements, most overdue, according to Patrick engineers Ryan Westrom and Chris DeRosia, would include signals at Country Club and Hillside Road, plus Market and Ridgefield Road next to the Union Pacific railroad tracks. In addition, suggested improvements at McConnell Road and Country Club were requested. Finally, the motion asked that Metra make whatever improvements would be necessary for commuters to be able to get out of the parking lot on the 9,360 vehicle per day Country Club Road.

“If improvements are made, they will accommodate the traffic we projected,” Westrom told the commissioners.

The engineering firm, starting from scratch, projected that about 36% of the station’s commuters would come down Country Club Road from the north, 41% down Hillside Road and 22% from north of the site across the tracks through Downtown Ridgefield. Do the math and you see that 77% is predicted to come from the same side of the tracks where the 17.5 acre station will be located.

Members expressed frustration that none of the roads were under city jurisdiction. The engineering report said current traffic volumes merited signals on both ends of Market Street in Downtown Ridgefield.  And, one at Tartan Drive and Ridgefield Road by 2015.

Consensus was expressed that commissioners wanted to protect Ridgefield residents and business owners, although none are located within Crystal Lake city limits.

Motions to change the zoning from Estate Residential to Semi-Public and Public Use passed 5-0, as did a motion to approve how Metra proposed to meet the city’s Watershed Ordinance.

A motion from former City Councilman Dave Goss to approve a Preliminary Planned Unit Development, contingent on staff recommendations and road improvements suggested by Patrick Engineering passed 3-2.

Metra’s presentation suggested that property values around train stations generally increased with the prediction being that farmland north of the station site on Country Club Road would “have development pressure…(with) higher density development, higher land values.”

Goss voted against his own motion, based on his belief that the commuter station would lower property values in Ridgefield. He was joined by Commission Chairman Jeff Greenman.

Commissioners Don Batastini, Vince Esposito, Alan Skluzacek voted in the affirmative, although Esposito had said earlier, “I don’t think a train station that size needs to be out there.”

When the issue reaches city council on April 6th, a three-fifths approval vote will be needed, according to Metra’s local attorney Joe Gottemoller.

Earlier, Gottemoller had argued that the new traffic generated by Metra “is very small.” He noted that none of the improvements recommended by the traffic consulting firm, for example improving Market Street, were on McHenry County’s Five-Year Plan.

During the public comment period Chris Conway from Hillside road worried about increased garbage on the road and its taking more than the ten minutes it now takes her to get out of her driveway.

“We kind of feel there’s some insider trading going on on this property,” speaking for herself and neighbors.

The property is half owned by McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler.

Also speaking was Craig Steagall, land owner across the tracks from Koehler’s land.

He questioned the traffic experts traffic projections. Earlier he had hired his own traffic consultant and presented results to the city council.

“How did 84 Lumber get in there without making those improvements?” he asked.

Steagall also asked how the decades-old agriculture zoning for the former Flowerwood nursery property got changed to industrial through “a zoning map correction.” (Later Planning and Economic Development Director Michelle Rentzsch confirmed that what Stegall said was correct.)

“There’s been an allegation I’m on my high horse because of a sour land deal,” he continued, telling of how Metra approached him to buy 12 acres and how Alexandra Lumber was considering purchasing 20 acres prior to purchasing 84 Lumber’s abandoned yard. Steagall then pointed out that under the discussions he had had with Metra to buy land south of the tracks, he and his partner would have had to put in $500,000 to a million for infrastructure improvements, a cost burden he considered unreasonable.

Steagall compared Metra’s planned station to

• “Health Care—Start over,”
• “the Bridge to Nowhere” and
• “the Cornhusker Kickback.”

Speaking also of the Lily Pond Road station, which will be built on donated land, Stegall concluded,

“It’s Metra stations for all our friends.”

Another man asked if people, especially McHenry County College students and employees would have walking and biking access.

“Would it be good service to the college.”

No one from McHenry College offered public comment.

“What prevented Metra from putting the station on the south side of the tracks,” another person asked.

In rebuttal, a factoid came out that was interesting.

Over 60% of the people using the Pingree Road Station are from Lake in the Hills.

Replying to Steagall, Gottemoller said, “Sour grapes. That’s a political item that we don’t have anything to do with.”

Rick Mack, representing Metra, explained that 15 trains would come down the track each morning and that the Lily Pond Road Station (called East Woodstock) was put on the south side of the tracks so most cars using it wouldn’t have to cross the tracks.

He explained that capacity throughout McHenry County was being expanded, pointing to all the empty land between Woodstock and Harvard.

“This is an entire upgrade, not just to address today,” Mack continued. Earlier, it had been pointed out that train storage would be moved from Crystal Lake to north of Woodstock, that there was no room to store additional trains in Crystal Lake.

“All of these improvements are interconnected.”

Traffic concerns were widespread among the commissioners.

Greenman said,

Jeff Greenman

“We’re going to trust the county to do what it needs to do and trust the state to do what it needs to do.

“There are so many interdependencies, so many ‘what if’s’

“It’s a huge risk.”

At the end of the meeting, Goss thanked the city council “for standing up for the traffic study.”

Metra had asked to use its own traffic consultant, but that was rejected by the council in favor of one on the city’s approved list.

Yesterday, McHenry County Blog reported on neighborhood objections to putting a car dealership on Route 14, right behind their homes.

Extreme Ford-Kia is moving from the Vulcan Lakes/Route 14 Tax Increment Financing district and it was pretty obvious that city council members didn’t want to lose this big sales tax generator after somehow convincing it to move out of the TIF district so other, waterfront-oriented development could replace it.

The residential neighbors complained about how tress would be replaced by light polls, how they expected additional water run-off to burden their already wet neighborhood, how a fifty-foot set-back agreed upon by six members of the current city council six years was going to be changed to an 8-foot set-back.

To see how unhappy the neighbors were after the meeting, read the top of this article.

The first question was from Councilman Dave Goss:

”Are you going to meet our stormwater ordinance?”

Sitting in the hot seat, local developer Bo Storm answered, “Absolutely.”

Later Mayor Aaron Shepley asked Director of Engineering and Building Vic Ramirez if approval of Extreme Ford’s zoning request would “make things worse.”

“They have to have final engineering. They have to meet that criteria.’”

Ramirez said there was a combined study for Banzai (Motorsports next door) and Extreme Ford.

“Whatever is required, (it has) to not make it any worse.

“If it needs additional storm water retention or volume control, those (mitigations) would have to be in place.”

“The storm water sounds like a real mess out there,” Councilman Jeff Thorsen said. “I don’t know how we can get our hands around that.”

“I think it is a huge issue re storm water,” Mayor Shepley agreed. “If you’re not doing what is required, they we’ll be looking for you to rectify those problems.”

“If (the car dealership is) lower than the adjoining property, it looks like the water would not be (flowing toward the neighbors).

“We are a 6-acre parcel of several hundred” in the watershed), the petitioner’s engineer pointed out, suggesting that any flooding would be attributable to sources other than his client’s property.

Thorsen pointed out that the Kelly Woods subdivision came after Anderson BMW Mazda Volkswagen, so it was not a similar situation.

He stressed that he had a “really big problem” with reversing the 50-foot buffer that he and five other sitting council members had voted to approve six years ago.

“Now, we’re coming back to the table and taking back what we gave. I really have a problem changing the game. I’m hard put to do that,” Thorsen said.

Councilwoman Ellen Brady Mueller asked Director of Planning and Economic Development Michelle Rentzsch about the proposed 8-foot set-back. She was told that they are “typically 8 feet.”

Former Planning and Zoning Commissioner Brett Hopkins took up where Mueller left off, asking about the 50-foot buffer.

“It was a function of what (was approved),” Rentzsch explained, pointing out it was “less than half the size of this property.”

“It had a detention pond in back,” Hopkins remembered.

Hopkins suggested this was the first time a challenge to this type of use had occurred.

“I’d like to see something more than this (8-foot set-back),” the councilman said.

Cathy Ferguson agreed.

“The buffering is an important thing to the neighbors. I would ask you to work with your neighbors.”

Shepley also asked about landscaping.

Strom replied that they had a landscape plan that calls for a continuous row of evergreens, plus 8-foot high Linden trees.

“Unlike many other car dealerships, we’ll have landscaping in the parking lot.”

Right before the vote, Hopkins asked about “the storm retention spot on the north side.”

“It’s the low spot,” Strom pointed out.

“Is it possible to more it to the (other side)?”

At this point I believe Strom suggested that the dealership could “lose a row of cars and have 33 feet of buffer.”

“That gets them very close to the original (50-feet),” Shepley said.

“I’m expected the lights to shine down on the property,” Goss explained in addition to his storm water question. One resident had said the car dealership would be like having a permanent night-light on.

Ferguson also asked that the “lights in the rear be turned off at night. When they’re on in the night time, I would ask you turn yours down, too.”

“On the lighting,” Shepley suggesting contacting “Power Conversion Products, a good company” that makes directional lighting.

He asked Rentzsch if the lighting were appropriate.

“Yes, it is,” she replied. “It’s completely cut off at the property line.”

There was also considerable discussion on the total size and number of signs, pennants, banners and balloon animals like gorillas. The balloons were taken out and with the square footage of the signs to be somewhere between the amounts of the two neighboring car dealerships.

Mueller made the motion to change to annex the property and change the zoning from urban residential to commerce. It passed 5-1, with Thorsen voting “No.” Councilman Ralph Dawson was absent.

= = = = =
The top picture shows part of the Extreme Ford property, as it looks from Route 31 before cutting down all of the trees.

The snow covered pines are what can be seen from the Chan Baldwin yard. Its edge is three steps from where an eight-foot fence will be constructed.

The head shots, from top to bottom, are Crystal Lake City Councilman Dave Goss, Director of Engineering and Building Vic Ramirez, Councilman Jeff Throsen, Councilwoman Ellen Brady Mueller, Councilman Brett Hopkins, Councilwoman Cathy Ferguson, Mayor Aaron Shepley and Director of Planning and Economic Development Michelle Rentzsch. All photos were taken previously.

Yesterday, McHenry County Blog reported on neighborhood objections to putting a car dealership on Route 14, right behind their homes.

Extreme Ford-Kia is moving from the Vulcan Lakes/Route 14 Tax Increment Financing district and it was pretty obvious that city council members didn’t want to lose this big sales tax generator after somehow convincing it to move out of the TIF district so other, waterfront-oriented development could replace it.

The residential neighbors complained about how tress would be replaced by light polls, how they expected additional water run-off to burden their already wet neighborhood, how a fifty-foot set-back agreed upon by six members of the current city council six years was going to be changed to an 8-foot set-back.

To see how unhappy the neighbors were after the meeting, read the top of this article.

The first question was from Councilman Dave Goss:

”Are you going to meet our stormwater ordinance?”

Sitting in the hot seat, local developer Bo Storm answered, “Absolutely.”

Later Mayor Aaron Shepley asked Director of Engineering and Building Vic Ramirez if approval of Extreme Ford’s zoning request would “make things worse.”

“They have to have final engineering. They have to meet that criteria.’”

Ramirez said there was a combined study for Banzai (Motorsports next door) and Extreme Ford.

“Whatever is required, (it has) to not make it any worse.

“If it needs additional storm water retention or volume control, those (mitigations) would have to be in place.”

“The storm water sounds like a real mess out there,” Councilman Jeff Thorsen said. “I don’t know how we can get our hands around that.”

“I think it is a huge issue re storm water,” Mayor Shepley agreed. “If you’re not doing what is required, they we’ll be looking for you to rectify those problems.”

“If (the car dealership is) lower than the adjoining property, it looks like the water would not be (flowing toward the neighbors).

“We are a 6-acre parcel of several hundred” in the watershed), the petitioner’s engineer pointed out, suggesting that any flooding would be attributable to sources other than his client’s property.

Thorsen pointed out that the Kelly Woods subdivision came after Anderson BMW Mazda Volkswagen, so it was not a similar situation.

He stressed that he had a “really big problem” with reversing the 50-foot buffer that he and five other sitting council members had voted to approve six years ago.

“Now, we’re coming back to the table and taking back what we gave. I really have a problem changing the game. I’m hard put to do that,” Thorsen said.

Councilwoman Ellen Brady Mueller asked Director of Planning and Economic Development Michelle Rentzsch about the proposed 8-foot set-back. She was told that they are “typically 8 feet.”

Former Planning and Zoning Commissioner Brett Hopkins took up where Mueller left off, asking about the 50-foot buffer.

“It was a function of what (was approved),” Rentzsch explained, pointing out it was “less than half the size of this property.”

“It had a detention pond in back,” Hopkins remembered.

Hopkins suggested this was the first time a challenge to this type of use had occurred.

“I’d like to see something more than this (8-foot set-back),” the councilman said.

Cathy Ferguson agreed.

“The buffering is an important thing to the neighbors. I would ask you to work with your neighbors.”

Shepley also asked about landscaping.

Strom replied that they had a landscape plan that calls for a continuous row of evergreens, plus 8-foot high Linden trees.

“Unlike many other car dealerships, we’ll have landscaping in the parking lot.”

Right before the vote, Hopkins asked about “the storm retention spot on the north side.”

“It’s the low spot,” Strom pointed out.

“Is it possible to more it to the (other side)?”

At this point I believe Strom suggested that the dealership could “lose a row of cars and have 33 feet of buffer.”

“That gets them very close to the original (50-feet),” Shepley said.

“I’m expected the lights to shine down on the property,” Goss explained in addition to his storm water question. One resident had said the car dealership would be like having a permanent night-light on.

Ferguson also asked that the “lights in the rear be turned off at night. When they’re on in the night time, I would ask you turn yours down, too.”

“On the lighting,” Shepley suggesting contacting “Power Conversion Products, a good company” that makes directional lighting.

He asked Rentzsch if the lighting were appropriate.

“Yes, it is,” she replied. “It’s completely cut off at the property line.”

There was also considerable discussion on the total size and number of signs, pennants, banners and balloon animals like gorillas. The balloons were taken out and with the square footage of the signs to be somewhere between the amounts of the two neighboring car dealerships.

Mueller made the motion to change to annex the property and change the zoning from urban residential to commerce. It passed 5-1, with Thorsen voting “No.” Councilman Ralph Dawson was absent.

= = = = =
The top picture shows part of the Extreme Ford property, as it looks from Route 31 before cutting down all of the trees.

The snow covered pines are what can be seen from the Chan Baldwin yard. Its edge is three steps from where an eight-foot fence will be constructed.

The head shots, from top to bottom, are Crystal Lake City Councilman Dave Goss, Director of Engineering and Building Vic Ramirez, Councilman Jeff Throsen, Councilwoman Ellen Brady Mueller, Councilman Brett Hopkins, Councilwoman Cathy Ferguson, Mayor Aaron Shepley and Director of Planning and Economic Development Michelle Rentzsch. All photos were taken previously.