Park Ridge Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting - October 27, 2026

The Planning and Zoning Commission met on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers, 505 Butler Place, Park Ridge. Chair Hanlin presided. Commissioners Schubert, Hutchinson, McMillan, Coogan, Hanlin, Papracky, and Shepherd were present; Commissioners Karstens and Gilpin were absent. The Commission approved minutes, unanimously approved a continued site plan review, discussed B-4 Uptown land-use options, and received a City Council liaison report.

Consent Calendar

• The Commission unanimously approved the October 13, 2026 meeting minutes without amendments.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No members of the public came forward for non-agenda public comment. During the 245 Vine Avenue case, only the applicant's team spoke.

Development Case: ZPR-26-10 - Site Plan Review at 245 Vine Avenue

• This continued case was originally scheduled for the July 28 meeting. The applicant appeared before the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) on July 23 for two variances: an additional townhome (two were permitted; three were proposed) and a parking variance. The parking variance became moot under the People Over Parking Act. On October 19, the City Council overturned the ZBA's negative recommendation and approved the additional townhome use; the Commission's review was therefore limited to site plan standards, not the use itself.
• The project would replace the existing two-story, four-unit apartment building, which has no garage, with three new two-story townhomes on an 8,200-square-foot lot. The building footprint is about 4,200 square feet. Each townhome would have two bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, 1,300 to 1,450 square feet above grade, a full basement, and about 250 square feet of private outdoor space. A detached three-car garage with one exterior parking space is proposed at the rear, accessed by a driveway.
• Applicant's attorney Brianna Skelly, on behalf of property owner Patrick Coyle, requested approval. Architect Ramon Contreras testified that the project would meet landscaping requirements. Commissioner questions focused on missing landscape-plan details, and the motion included a landscaping compliance condition.
• A motion to approve the site plan as described in the staff memorandum and attachments for ZPR-26-0010 passed unanimously, 7-0, with the condition that the applicant comply with all landscaping requirements.

Discussion Item: Potential Permitted Land Use Types in B-4 Uptown Subdistricts

• Staff Planner Claudia Hampel explained that medical/dental clinics are currently permitted in B1, B2, and B3; a special use in B4 Uptown Core and Uptown Commercial; and unavailable in the Transitional subdistrict. Examples include therapists, IV hydration/vitamin clinics, Botox establishments, dentists, physical therapists, and family medicine. Permanent makeup is classified as a personal services establishment, not a medical/dental clinic.
• Existing non-conforming medical/dental uses in B4 would continue to operate under Section 15 of the zoning ordinance regardless of any future change.
• Staff presented three flexible considerations: (1) allow medical/dental clinics as a special use in Transitional; (2) keep special-use oversight on ground floors but allow different regulation for above-ground floors, similar to personal services and office regulations; and (3) create a distinct medical retail or med-tail definition, a concept deferred during the Uptown Master Plan process.
• Staff noted that she found about seven medical/dental special-use applications in the last five years, but many inquiries come informally from realtors and property owners and never become formal applications.
• Commissioner Hutchinson asked whether a future separate text amendment about medical and adult-use cannabis co-location could intersect with this discussion; staff confirmed it is a completely separate use and would not be affected by this item.
• Commissioner positions generally favored consideration two, with continued special-use oversight for ground-floor medical/dental uses, and asked staff to explore consideration three. Commissioners also discussed the difficulty of enforcing retail-percentage definitions and the need to research how other communities handle definitions and enforcement.
• No formal vote was taken. Staff will bring back a broader proposal, likely at the first January 2027 meeting, covering a possible medical-retail definition and enforcement approaches.

City Council Liaison Report

• City Council Liaison Joseph Steinfels reported on the October 19 City Council and Committee of the Whole meetings:
  • Commissioner Karstens was reappointed to the Planning and Zoning Commission.
  • The Mayor issued a proclamation recognizing Community Planning Month.
  • The Historic Preservation Commission presented a property-by-property study of the pretzel area of historic interest; no formal historic district was proposed, and the City Council's moratorium on historic district creation remains in place.
  • The City Council rejected the ZBA's negative recommendation on the 245 Vine Avenue major variance and approved the third townhome; the parking variance was stricken under the People Over Parking Act.
  • The Committee of the Whole discussed adding public parking to the substantial community benefit list because the People Over Parking Act removes parking requirements. A legal question exists about whether municipalities can enforce a developer's promise to provide parking; the city attorney and director are reviewing it, and the issue may come back to P&Z for a recommendation.
  • A new lease has been entered for the Uptown Metro train station vendor after the previous lease fell through.
  • A proposal for a hotel and multi-unit residential building on Third Street will be presented at the November 4 City Council meeting.
  • An affordable housing and inclusionary zoning discussion is expected at City Council; if it leads to zoning code changes, the matter would return to P&Z through a public hearing.
• P&Z members raised questions about applicants negotiating changes at Council hearings and about resident concerns regarding repeated continuances. The city planner noted that substantive changes could be referred back to the Commission.
• The liaison said the eminent domain matter is moving through Cook County court, likely on a roughly two-year timeline.
• The liaison also announced a Veterans Day ceremony on November 11 at 11:00 a.m. at Hodges Park.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the October 13, 2026 minutes unanimously.
• Approved ZPR-26-10 at 245 Vine Avenue unanimously, 7-0, with a landscaping-compliance condition.
• Directed staff to continue working on a B-4 medical/dental clinic text amendment, including a possible medical-retail definition and enforcement research; no binding action was taken.
• The Commission adjourned by unanimous motion. Upcoming P&Z meetings were listed as November 10 and December 15, 2026, subject to change.