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Record of Proceedings

Park Ridge Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting - March 10, 2026

City Council & Commissions — Tuesday, March 10, 2026
BodyPark Ridge, Illinois
SessionCity Council & Commissions
DateTuesday, March 10, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:08:07

Original source
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0:00

There we go.

0:01

All right.

0:02

We have five.

0:03

All right.

0:04

Calling to order the planning and zoning meeting for February 24th, 2026.

0:09

Uh Joseph, would you be kind enough to give us a roll call?

0:11

We shall.

0:12

Chair Hanlan.

0:14

Here.

0:14

Commissioner Papracky.

0:16

Here.

0:17

Commissioner Dalmeyer.

0:18

Here.

0:19

Commissioner Hutchinson.

0:20

Here.

0:20

Commissioner McMillan.

0:21

Here.

0:22

Absent.

0:22

We have uh Commissioner Coogan.

0:24

Commissioner Shepherd's also absent, as well as Car Commissioner Karstens and Commissioner Gilpin.

0:31

We have staff planner Claudia Hampett Hampel.

0:34

We have the director of CPND, Drew Austin, myself, Edmin, Josie Firaci, and we also have Joseph Steinfeld's aldermanic liaison.

0:43

Welcome.

0:45

Well, thank you so much.

0:47

First up on our docket today is approval of minutes.

0:50

Did everybody get a chance to read the February 24th minutes?

0:54

Yes.

0:55

And we have any comments, suggestions, edits, uh thoughts that we need to adjust for.

1:01

No.

1:02

Okay.

1:06

I'll take that as a no.

1:08

All right, great.

1:09

Uh can we make a a motion to accept the minutes?

1:14

I motion to approve.

1:15

Second.

1:16

All right.

1:17

All in favor?

1:18

I we are there.

1:20

Uh next up on the dog public comment on a non-agenda item.

1:24

Is anybody in the audience that would like to speak about something that is not on tonight's agenda?

1:30

And I do not see any volunteers to hit the microphones, so we're gonna move on.

1:34

Uh next up is development cases.

1:36

Tonight we just have one development case.

1:38

It is a public hearing review and action on special use 2603.

1:43

This is to allow a special use for a medical dental at 27 North Northwest Highway.

1:51

Claudia, would you be kind enough to introduce us to this case?

1:54

I can.

1:55

Um, as Chair Hanlin indicated, this is a special use for a medical dental clinic at 27 North Northwest Highway.

2:01

Um I will let the applicant speak to the specifics of the case themselves.

2:04

I'm just gonna kind of touch on a couple things.

2:06

They've indicated in their report, I know medical dental clinic is broad, and you're probably like Claudia, what kind of medical dental clinic?

2:12

They're considered a medical dental clinic based on the fact that there are licensed medical professionals who are working in the business, um, but they've indicated it's a wellness center, so it's not just your typical like doctor's office, walk in there for like a teeth cleaning or anything like that.

2:26

The only other thing that I will bring to note is I know we always talk about this with B4 subdistricts as parking considerations.

2:32

This building's a little unique.

2:34

They do have a parking lot associated with the building, so they do have some parking that they've indicated in their materials will be for their business.

2:41

Um so I just wanted to bring that to note.

2:43

Um, and that's about it.

2:44

Do you guys have questions for me?

2:47

No.

2:49

Cool.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Code█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Affordable Housing████████████████████████████████35%
Procedural████████9%
Public Health██2%
Public Engagement██2%
Liquor License Review█1%
Public Transportation█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Park Ridge Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting

Date: March 10, 2026, 7:00 PM

Location: City Hall Council Chambers, 505 Butler Place, Park Ridge, IL

Commissioners Present: Chair Hanlan, Commissioners Papracky, Dalmeyer, Hutchinson, McMillan Commissioners Absent: Coogan, Shepherd, Karstens, Gilpin Staff Present: Planner Claudia Hampel, CPND Director Drew Austin, Recording Secretary Josie Firaci, Aldermanic Liaison Joseph Steinfeld

The meeting began with roll call and approval of the February 24, 2026 minutes (motion passed unanimously). No public comments on non-agenda items were received.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of February 24, 2026 minutes (unanimous)

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Nan Parson (422 Lake Avenue, 55-year resident) urged the commission to adopt mandatory inclusionary zoning, citing a national affordable housing crisis and personal stories of residents being priced out. She emphasized that the city’s current voluntary approach has not produced units.
  • Missy Langan (1505 Divine Avenue) commended the discussion on increasing the PUD minimum lot size from 20,000 sq ft to one acre, noting this was a conversation from 2015-16. She opposed mandatory inclusionary zoning, arguing it would eliminate other public benefits, and opposed fee-in-lieu options, calling them a way for developers to pay their way out. She supported a 12+ unit threshold for affordability requirements.
  • A third speaker (name not given) echoed support for mandatory inclusionary zoning and criticized the city’s inaction on affordable housing despite the housing plan being two years old.

Discussion Items

1. Development Case SU-26-03: Special Use for Medical/Dental Clinic at 27 N Northwest Highway

  • Applicant: Supreme Wellness Aesthetics and Recovery (owners Steven and Dominique Loreto, represented by Guido Nary, Nary Architects).
  • The business currently operates a 1,450 sq ft location in Park Ridge and seeks to expand to a 5,600 sq ft space. Services include functional medicine, IV nutrition, red light therapy, hyperbaric chamber, massage, personal training, and retail supplements.
  • No exterior changes; all work is interior remodeling. Parking: 12 spaces provided. The building owner (McClellan) continues to run a real estate office elsewhere on the property.
  • Commissioners found the use compatible with the Uptown core, noting similar businesses (Pure Bar, Orangetheory, CBD wellness) in the area. There were no public comments.
  • Motion: To recommend approval to City Council. Vote: 6-0 (all present).

2. Affordable Housing Plan – Strategies 5 & 6 (Discussion Only)

Strategy 6: PUD Public Benefit List Reform

  • Commissioners agreed to keep affordable housing as a voluntary choice on the public benefits menu, not a mandatory requirement.
  • A proposal to increase the minimum lot size for PUDs from 20,000 sq ft to one acre (excluding Uptown B4) was discussed. Several commissioners supported this, arguing it would lead to more meaningful public benefits. Staff will analyze the impact and return with data.

Strategy 5: Voluntary Density Bonus Program

  • Four components were discussed:
    • Density Bonus Ratio: 1:1 (one additional market-rate unit for each affordable unit) was favored, but concerns about compounding density led to interest in a cap (e.g., 120% of base zoning density).
    • Affordable Unit Percentage: The current 20% (from the public benefits list) was seen as reasonable.
    • Eligibility Threshold: Commissioners leaned toward 12-15 units as the minimum for triggering affordability requirements, to balance feasibility and impact.
    • Payment in Lieu: Mixed opinions. Some favored allowing it if funds are used to create actual affordable units; others opposed, fearing it would let developers avoid compliance. Staff will gather more information on how funds would be administered.
  • No votes were taken; this was a workshop session. Staff will prepare a formal proposal for a future meeting.

3. City Council Liaison Report (Alderman Steinfeld)

  • Hometown Heroes 2026: Banners will be displayed between Prospect and Washington.
  • Memorial Day Grand Marshal: Don Hurst, a 97-year-old WWII veteran and Medal of Honor recipient.
  • Farmers Market: Liquor license approved for beer/wine sampling and sales (7 AM – 1 PM). A second license for mimosas/bellinis is pending.
  • Prairie Street Townhouses: The applicant requested no vote; the case is continued.
  • Other: Single-use plastic bag ban passed first reading; traffic calming measures discussed; update on the “People Over Parking Act” and related Springfield bills (ADUs, zoning changes) – staff will monitor and present to City Council.

Key Outcomes

  • SU-26-03: Recommended for approval to City Council (6-0).
  • Strategy 6: Consensus to keep affordable housing as a voluntary public benefit, not mandatory. Staff to analyze increasing PUD minimum lot size to one acre.
  • Strategy 5: No formal decisions. Initial direction: 1:1 density bonus ratio, 20% affordable set-aside, 12-15 unit threshold, and further study of payment-in-lieu options. Staff to develop a formal proposal.
  • Prairie Street Development: Continued at applicant’s request.
  • Meeting adjourned at approximately 9:30 PM.

Meeting Transcript

There we go. All right. We have five. All right. Calling to order the planning and zoning meeting for February 24th, 2026. Uh Joseph, would you be kind enough to give us a roll call? We shall. Chair Hanlan. Here. Commissioner Papracky. Here. Commissioner Dalmeyer. Here. Commissioner Hutchinson. Here. Commissioner McMillan. Here. Absent. We have uh Commissioner Coogan. Commissioner Shepherd's also absent, as well as Car Commissioner Karstens and Commissioner Gilpin. We have staff planner Claudia Hampett Hampel. We have the director of CPND, Drew Austin, myself, Edmin, Josie Firaci, and we also have Joseph Steinfeld's aldermanic liaison. Welcome. Well, thank you so much. First up on our docket today is approval of minutes. Did everybody get a chance to read the February 24th minutes? Yes. And we have any comments, suggestions, edits, uh thoughts that we need to adjust for. No. Okay. I'll take that as a no. All right, great. Uh can we make a a motion to accept the minutes? I motion to approve. Second. All right. All in favor? I we are there. Uh next up on the dog public comment on a non-agenda item. Is anybody in the audience that would like to speak about something that is not on tonight's agenda? And I do not see any volunteers to hit the microphones, so we're gonna move on. Uh next up is development cases. Tonight we just have one development case. It is a public hearing review and action on special use 2603. This is to allow a special use for a medical dental at 27 North Northwest Highway. Claudia, would you be kind enough to introduce us to this case? I can. Um, as Chair Hanlin indicated, this is a special use for a medical dental clinic at 27 North Northwest Highway. Um I will let the applicant speak to the specifics of the case themselves. I'm just gonna kind of touch on a couple things.

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