COMMUNITY GROUPS UNITE TO RESHAPE DOWNTOWN PLANS

Frustrated by village and library boards they feel have ignored them, 20 downtown business owners have joined with advocates for keeping the library at its present location and are crafting their own general plan for downtown redevelopment.

Calling themselves the Strategic Plan Coalition, the group plans to issue a position paper outlining its priorities: financial assistance for merchants who must relocate, fairer prices for long-time businesses forced to move and incentives for those who want to stay. "The mom and pop operations and unique businesses must be included in greater proportion to retain a Glenview flavor," said coalition leader Jennifer Kozicki.

The coalition will also ask the village to retain Dominick's or another grocery store at the Waukegan Road location and to find a better spot for the fire station on Glenview Road. Members propose that Village Hall give land at The Glen to the post office, build a new facility there for mail processing and lease that property back to the postal service. That would allow the library to remain at its present location where it could add to the existing building and expand parking.

The group rejects plans to add more apartments, condos, town houses and redundant retail operations downtown, predicting so much new construction would make traffic and parking problems worse. Members plan to attend the first meeting of the new downtown planning committee at 6:30 p.m. tonight (March 15) on the lower level of Village Hall.

PLAN COMMISSION CONFRONTS LIBRARY BOARD PREFERENCE

Setting the stage for a possible confrontation, six members of Glenview's plan commission have called on the village to keep its library at the current location. Members of the library board have made it clear they consider the site unsuitable – too small for the 100,000 square foot building and 250 parking places they hope to build.

The comprehensive plan commission identifies several possible sites including the present location, and two further east on Glenview Road where the Colonial Courts office building now stands and where the downtown fire station sits. Chairman Howard Silver said the library needs to stay in the downtown area, but he questioned the other two sites. "I go through a lot of suburbs, and I've yet to see a library smack dab in the middle of retail,"Silver explained. "It's always just on the outside. Even the city of Chicago put its new library on State Street south of Van Buren, so it doesn't interfere with the retail."

Silver said putting a library next to shops would create so much traffic that customers might be scared away. "The continuous turnover of traffic would be horrible for Glenview Road, something that may destroy the rest of the retail there," he said.

"The library board does not seem committed to being downtown," said Commissioner Tom Fallon. "What does that do to us?"

Silver recalled Library Board President Mark Grant's candid admission that his board must go anywhere the village wants, since Glenview's library has no independent taxing or bonding authority, and its finances are handled through the village. "It's the golden rule," Silver quipped. "He who has the gold makes the rules."

Commissioner Steve Bucklin also felt the library should stay where it is as part of a comprehensive plan that includes the post office on Prairie Street. Bucklin had recently seen a brand new post office in a community near Galena, Illinois. Noting Glenview urgently needs a better post office, he urged the village to come up with "some alternative plans" to move the post office and make space for an expanded library.

Commissioner Joe DiMattina agreed that the library should stay downtown to "draw people in," and expressed disappointment that the library board was asking for so much parking. "I don't think any site downtown can handle the type of parking that the library wants or needs," he said in urging the library to consider shared parking opportunities and construction of underground space.

AND FURTHERMORE ...

Looking at other downtown redevelopment issues, Commissioner Gary Wendt said Glenview could let the marketplace dictate what happens, or the community could act to support things it holds dear. "When we were redeveloping The Glen, the community wanted to preserve the prairie," he recalled. "First it was seven acres, then 10 acres, then 15, and 20 have, fortunately, been preserved." Noting that there is very little open space downtown, he thought landscaped areas should be a priority. "We need green space as much as we need retail and parking. You can't just shoe horn everything in. Perhaps less building than we currently have is a more viable solution."

Commissioner Peter Brinckerhoff agreed, saying the river should be a focus of downtown redevelopment.


COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSULTANT PONDERS CHANGES

The chief planner for the consulting company hired to advise Glenview on how it might grow in the next 10 years says changes to the comprehensive plan may be needed before it goes to the village board for approval. After hearing public testimony and plan commission comments, Larry Witzling says his document might stress that change will take time and discussions should include merchants now doing business downtown. The plan could also be stronger in its support of existing shops. "That probably was not given sufficient emphasis," he said. Witzling also thought more discussion might be needed regarding inclusion of affordable housing.

PLANNERS TAKE AIM AT INDUSTRIAL CORRIDORS

Two years ago, rumors of possible re-zoning reached the Lehigh Triangle – home to about nine businesses along Lehigh Road. Angry business owners stormed Village Hall and demanded a promise that they would not be pushed out by a comprehensive plan that put pricey townhouses and condos in their place. With a view of Lake Glenview, the land seemed a likely target for residential development, but the business owners didn't want to go.

Village officials gave swift assurance that no one would be zoned out, and the comprehensive plan now calls for retail and industrial use but nothing residential on Lehigh north of Chestnut. That didn't sit well with 64-year-old Sherwin Feldstein, owner of United Standard Industries on Lehigh. He took note of how much money Glenview was spending to improve the appearance of Lehigh Road. With storm sewers and extensive landscaping on the east side he remarked, "It's gonna' be one classy looking street. The market value of that property is going up every day, and people have approached me to sell my property. I don't have any plans to move, but I'm not going to live forever."

On behalf of his heirs, Feldstein proposed the village reconsider the future of Lehigh. "It will be a highly desirable residential area. If we don't allow residential use, we abridge the rights of landowners to sell their property, and we deny future potential residents the chance to live next to a great recreational and shopping area which is a short walking distance from the train station. We have to allow for the inevitable."

Former Trustee Kent Fuller, who sat on the comprehensive plan commission, testified that Glenview needs industrial land. "This is a recommendation for the public good," he said, adding owners were not being deprived of the right to sell their property for industrial purposes, and the village had no obligation to provide them a windfall.

Chairman Silver said the town "is trying to protect the industrial owners. I don't want to re-zone anything for anybody's financial bonanza and give away what little industrial land we have. There aren't a lot of places for mom and pop industrial," he said. "This town is up to its ears in residential – especially multi-family, and I think it's time we committed to preserving the industrial tax base."

He pointed out that the village board could, in future, allow residential construction there, but Silver did not want to encourage it through the comprehensive plan.

Commissioner DiMattina said there was no room for ambivalence in this area. "If we open a crack for residential development, that will open into a fissure and become cavernous after a while. The pressure will be tremendous, and there will be a domino effect."

Commissioner Bucklin worried that the market for industrial property was not that strong. He feared owners might be unable to sell their land for industrial use, and the village might be stuck with vacant industrial property. "I would hate to see a property owner be unable to sell his land," he said. "I would hate to handcuff them in an area so near a train station, that would be very attractive to developers of high scale homes and condominiums. I think it's a mistake not to allow that."

Commissioner Brinckerhoff also spoke for residential development, saying it made sense to allow housing near a rail line and a lake. "That's going to create pressure for residential use," he concluded.

But Chairman Silver urged Brinckerhoff not to think of Lake Glenview as a lake. "Let's call it what it is – a retention pond. Then it relates more to the industrial uses," he joked.

Editor's note: It was good to see Kent Fuller at the hearing, proving that a public servant's commitment need not end with his or her term of election. Fuller and former Trustee John Crawford deserve our thanks. They continue to give their time, energy and thought to important local issues while so many of their colleagues have dropped from the scene.

OBLITERATING BLIGHT

The plan urged industries on Lehigh to consider spiffing up their properties with better landscaping and more attractive parking lots and described the Prairie Materials' concrete plant on Lehigh as "blighted." The term offended owner Gerry Krozel who hoped to educate the public about the advantages of having his company in Glenview. Krozel said concrete does not travel well. With the passage of time, he explained, freshly mixed concrete begins to get hard, and during the summer months concrete trucks can't go far. "You want good products in all these buildings we're building today," he said. "That concrete plant services many of the structures in this town. That's why that plant's there."

Chairman Silver assured Krozel that no one would force him out but encouraged the land owner to consider improving the appearance of his property.

Krozel's neighbor isn't holding her breath. Jan Dussias and her family have owned the nation's oldest indoor tennis club on Old Willow Road since 1978. The family would like to expand, but there's a problem. To build on, they need a sanitary sewer that can link up with the private sewer owned by Krozel. In 1995, as a condition for allowing some construction on his property, the village told Krozel he must extend his sewer to the northern property line, making a hook up with the North Shore Racquet Club possible. That legal covenant gave the company six months to comply.

More than eight years later, nothing has been done. Dussias says Prairie Materials has dragged its feet and put her off. In 2001, Development Director Mary Bak said the village could take Prairie to court, but she preferred that Dussias and her neighbor "work things out" on their own. A lawyer for the cement maker told Glenview Watch, "Whether or not we reach an agreement is strictly between us. If we don't, then that's the way it goes."

When the comprehensive plan appeared this year, suggesting tax increment financing be used to redevelop Old Willow Road, Dussias perked up. TIF often means new infrastructure – pavement, street lights – and sewers. So she went to Village Hall for the hearing, hopeful that this time she might find a way to grow in Glenview without taking her neighbor or the village to court. Her hopes were quickly dashed.

Bak informed her the plan was not specific about how TIF funds would be used. "I think the recommendations went to the landscaping, the roadway, the sidewalk and perhaps bike paths but not individual sewers," she said.

Editor's note: When we first wrote about this situation, we concluded, "Something smells here, and it isn't sewer gas." Today, we draw the same conclusion. There's plenty of TIF money to help big developers like Oliver McMillan, Kimball Hill, Concord Homes and the James Company, but no assistance is available to small businesses that have paid taxes to the village for decades.

WHY BOTHER WITH BIKE PATHS AND SIDEWALKS?

The comprehensive plan's recommendation that Glenview build sidewalks and bike paths along industrial corridors puzzled Commissioner DiMattina. Singling out Old Willow Road he said, "You have the concrete mixing. You've got the school bus storage place back there too. That's just kind of a void. There's no reason for anybody to go there."

"I would disagree," said Development Director Bak. "There are no sidewalks on Old Willow. There are no curbs. It is a dangerous area to walk or ride a bike. There are employees at Target who may take the train. There are employees at Kohl's who may live east of the railroad tracks. There are restaurants and other retail facilities in the shopping center (Steak ‘N Shake, Chipotle, Target) that kids want to go to. They don't necessarily have cars. The intent is not to create a pedestrian-friendly area like downtown, but to make it safe and more attractive for pedestrians."

Editor's note: With the coming of spring, we think it's a great time for village trustees and plan commission members to bike and walk through Glenview – to get a first-hand perspective on traffic and the need for sidewalks and bicycle paths to connect the village.

CHESTNUT AVENUE ACTION

The commission also reviewed and approved the comprehensive plan's proposal that industrial uses be permitted on the south side of Chestnut Avenue with mixed use buildings combining retail on the first floor with residential units above. Consultant Witzling said condos were appropriate in this setting, as opposed to Lehigh, because multi-family housing already exists on the north side of Chestnut at Valley Lo.

Glenview attorney Mike Downing, who represents an industrial property owner trying to sell, would prefer that the plan gave approval for residential development alone. "I'm here to talk about reality and property rights," he told the commission.

Downing warned the marketplace was not be willing to invest in industrial property so close to The Glen. "This isn't rocket science!" he said, his voice rising with indignation. "All you have to do is listen to the marketplace."

Downing said business owners didn't need protection since industrial uses were permitted for their properties, and no one could force them to sell. He dismissed fears that large condo buildings might replace the industrial structures along Lake Glenview. "My goodness, folks, how long have you been on this commission? How often have we approved a large scale, massive, tall condominium development outside downtown Glenview? That's reality!"

PLAN PRESERVES JEFFERSON/MONROE RESIDENTIAL

The consultant said high-quality town homes and condos should still be allowed in the Jefferson/Monroe neighborhood north and west of the Glenview Car Wash. The comprehensive plan suggests the village protect mature trees in the area, maintain the character and quality of the neighborhood through high standards for architecture, restrictions on building heights and the location of garages.

GOODIES FOR THE GUYS BACK HOME

Members of the North Shore Country Club have received a tempting invitation to golf in Ireland this fall and to dine at the U.S. Embassy with Glenview's own Jim Kenny. The former Circles resident was appointed ambassador to Ireland after giving big bucks to the Bush campaign.

GLENVIEW LEFT BEHIND BY FEDS' EDUCATION PLAN

While Evanston threatens to drop out of the "No Child Left Behind" program, a federal plan that puts heavy emphasis on achievement tests and withholds funds from those that don't make adequate yearly progress, Glenview is hanging in. Last year, District 34 learned both Westbrook and Springman schools had failed to make the grade. Glenview immediately protested, pointing to a statistical error at Westbrook, but Springman's situation was more complex. There, special education students did not score high enough on the annual math test, putting the school's federal funding in jeopardy.

The district gets more than $220,000 a year from Washington – a relatively small amount given the its overall budget of about $34 million. Spokesman Brett Clark says District 34 will change the focus of its math curriculum for special education kids, and a task force continues to study the special ed program overall.

Editor's note: "No Child Left Behind" is a bogus approach to improved education. It forces communities to spend too much money and time testing students who learn in different ways at different rates. We're now likely to see special ed students at Springman drilled extensively in an effort to assure they pass a standardized test that may have little to do with their real needs. As a matter of principle, we wish Glenview were in a position to protest – to tell Washington its arbitrary approach does not add up to better public education. As a practical matter, the school board should evaluate how much we spend trying to comply.

STILL NO SIGN OF TIF DETAILS

Glenview's schools and park district have been getting money from the tax increment financing fund set up to speed redevelopment of the former Glenview Naval Air Station, but there's no sign of the statistics promised to help them plan. When the TIF was established, Village Hall promised to hold a public meeting annually to discuss the status of redevelopment, but the last meeting took place in December 2002. The village manager's office says it will be "April at least," before the next discussion. Officials say they're waiting for accurate tax information from Cook County.

The park district's share of tax payments from The Glen was $535,400. That number was based on the fact that just over 2,900 people are now living in Glenview's newest neighborhood. So called "make whole" payments to local schools are based on the number of kids attending from The Glen. District 34 got a check for more than $1.5 million for 172 new students, while District 225 received $418,400 for 28 kids. The library's share of TIF dollars was $291,300, and the village got $565,500. The balance of tax dollars coming from The Glen is applied to paying for news roads and sidewalks, sewers, lighting, parking garages at Von Maur, Gallery Park and Little Bear Garden, interest payments on debt and other expenses associated with redevelopment of The Glen.

THE GREEN SCENE

Visitors to Gallery Park may see some new wildlife on the scene including a muskrat who paddles around the lake, his head above water, his tail moving back and forth like a rudder, and a coot – a black, duck-like creature with a white bill. On Saturday, Glenview's wetland consultant conducted a controlled burn of cat tails in Lake Glenview to make planting of other aquatic plants possible. Signs warning motorists of smoke ahead were placed on Patriot Boulevard. A larger burn of Gallery Park will take place later this spring to stimulate growth of native prairie plants.

MEDIA WATCH

If you're concerned about the manipulation of U.S. media, mark your calendar for 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 19 and 26 at the North Shore Unitarian Church, 2100 Half Day Road in Deerfield. Community organizers will show two videos: "Constructing Public Opinion" deals with the myth that most Americans are moderate or conservative and shows how the media sustains our belief in an electoral system with a built-in bias against the interests of ordinary people through polls and manipulation of news. The second tape, "Peace, Propaganda & The Promised Land: U.S. Media & the Subversion of Peace," is about news coverage on the Middle East.

ELECTION WATCH

– Recommendations are out for judicial candidates on Tuesday's primary ballot. We go with the Chicago Bar Association advice at www.chicagobar.org. The group lists 16 candidates it does not consider qualified, so you might want to print out the list and take it with you to the polls.

– Cook County voters will also have the chance to be part of a little experiment proposed by Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn – a politician known for his love of referenda. This time, Quinn wonders how the voters might feel about boosting revenue for education by raising taxes on the rich, and he got Cook County to put the idea on this spring's ballot. It reads:
Shall the people of Illinois by referendum create an Education Trust Fund which would raise the state income tax only on those individuals who make more than a quarter-million dollars a year (less than 2% of all taxpayers) in order to improve education funding for every Illinois public school student and provide annual property tax relief for every Illinois homeowner guaranteed by the state constitution?

This is an advisory referendum. Nothing need happen if it's approved, but Quinn will use a win in Cook County to push for a vote in Springfield.

Editor's note: The problem, of course, is that while people who make more than $250,000 a year are a small minority of voters, they're a huge majority when it comes to bankrolling the campaigns of politicians. Don't hold your breath.

READERS WRITE

Executive Director Vickie Novak responds to a complaint from a reader about the YES for Pools display at Glenview's public library: "The library allowed the Park District's request to display information about the pools in the Adult Services area because the display conforms to the library's guidelines for such material. The nature of the display is informational only and nowhere does it say, "Vote YES." The library remains neutral, as it must, on these kinds of issues, but is trying to provide a public service by making information available -- which is what we are about!"


Mark Ganchiff writes about the pools referendum: "When voters go to the polls to decide whether to fund construction of two new swimming pools, they should remember that the hours at the indoor pools at the Park Center have been substantially reduced because of lack of usage. In our area, many health clubs with pools have opened in the past few years, and there is no evidence our park district can compete."

But ML says: "The Park Center's pool usage and reduction in hours should not be used as justification for rejecting new outdoor pools. Going to an outdoor pool on a bright, sunny day is a completely different experience than using an indoor pool. During the summer, I enjoy swimming a little, and then perhaps sitting by the pool on a lounge chair with a book while my kids swim. I can't say that I'd do the same next to an indoor pool. I'll be punching YES on March 16th."

"Frustrated" writes about construction problems on Lehigh Road: "It might be time to rename Lehigh. Let's call it Lelow! If that road is ever opened fully, I will be greatly surprised."

And JH is disappointed with the delay: "Here we are, the Ides of March. It comes as no surprise that those who use The Glen of North Glenview Metra station are still inconvenienced by the unfinished road work on Lehigh north of Chestnut. The road has been closed for two years. Though there are new streets, the two drop off areas at the train station cannot be accessed at Lehigh and West Lake Avenue. Completion of the project was promised for March, however there have been no sightings of construction workers or road crews. It looks as though there's no way it will be finished this month. Why is this matter of such low priority to the village board?"

A writer who calls himself a "friend of the library" sees no reason to stray from the original plan to have our main post office at The Glen and a renovated library downtown: "Why reinvent the wheel? A couple of years ago the village almost wrapped up a deal with the post office to relocate to The Glen so the library could add on to their existing facility. If it made sense then, why not now? Last year the post office earned over $3.9 billion. Not exactly small change. So, why hasn't Larry Carlson reopened negotiations with the post office to get the ball rolling again? The cost to double the size of the existing building would be about $10 to 11 million - less than half the cost to build new. So, if I've got it figured right, Glenview can have a spectacular ‘new' expanded library like Northbrook and a great new post office at The Glen for half the price of one. So, why move? Seems to me Larry Carlson is looking a gift horse in the mouth. More for less. What a novel idea."

Fritz thinks the park district's decision to ban bikes from skate parks until better building materials make facilities more resistant to bike damage in dumb: "Wonderful. Wonderful. Dumb. Dumb. The wizards at the park district bring down the law on kids that ride bikes at the skate parks. What vision! Those parks are a magnet for any 10-17 year-old on a bike. So what message does the kid get? Break the rules, break the law, nobody will catch me anyway. The park board has basically said, ‘Fiddle faddle. We can worry about this when technology catches up with mother nature.' Good luck on this one."

And Jennifer Kozicki wants to hear from Watch readers concerned about downtown redevelopment. She can be reached at Glenview Coin & Collectibles, 847-309-9546 or GlenvwCoin@aol.com .
 

YOUR TURN: Write to glenviewwatch@aol.com or 3537 Maple Leaf Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. If you haven’t already done so, please consider making a contribution to support The Watch. Non-deductible checks should be payable to Glenview Watch. Thanks for your support and for reading. Dean Schott and Sandy Hausman, Co-Editors.

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