Plainfield Zoning Board of Appeals and Plan Commission Joint Meeting - October 21, 2025

On Tuesday, October 21, 2025, the Plainfield Zoning Board of Appeals and Plan Commission held a joint meeting in the Village Boardroom, 24401 W. Lockport Street, Plainfield, Illinois. The meeting began at 7:01 PM and adjourned at 8:33 PM. The board approved prior meeting minutes, received a development report, held public hearings on the 7 Brew Coffee drive-through and The Nook by Elevant apartment proposals, and approved the 2026 meeting schedule. The Nook vote was continued to November 4, 2025 because Commissioner Heinen was required to recuse.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the October 7, 2025 Plan Commission minutes by voice vote. (The written minutes were not provided in the meeting materials.)

Development Report

• Staff reported that the Oswego Boundary Agreement was approved the previous night.
• The Unified Development Ordinance update will be discussed at a joint Plan Commission and Village Board workshop tentatively scheduled for December 2, 2025.

Public Comments and Testimony

• No residents spoke during the general public comment period.
• During The Nook public hearing, Fran Lehman, founding pastor of LifeSpring Church, said he had hoped the property would be developed residentially, welcomed the proposal, asked to stay involved on stormwater issues because his church is across the street and between the site and the river, and supported future full access at the Wood Farm Road and Lockport Street intersection.

7 Brew Coffee Drive-Through (Case 2115-091925.VAR.SU.SPR)

• The applicant, Hubrew/7 Brew Coffee, requested a special use permit, site plan review, and three variances for a drive-through-only coffee stand at 12740 S. Route 59, the former Chili's site in the Kensington Center (PIN 07-01-33-208-006-0000), zoned B3 Highway Business District. The building would be 510 square feet, with a 238-square-foot detached cooler, no indoor seating, hours of 5:30 AM to 10 PM weekdays and until 11 PM weekends, and five employees on site at peak times.
• The variances requested were from Section 9-99 (more than one wall sign), Section 9-116 (drive-through facing a public street), and Section 9-121 (LED lighting). The applicant proposed a shielded LED light band on the canopy trim rather than exposed LED tubing.
• The site plan preserves 17 existing parking spaces and provides 38 drive-through stacking spaces, compared with the code minimum of 4. Access would use two existing shopping-center entrances, with the southern point exit-only and cross access to the north; a bypass lane can be activated as a third order lane during surges.
• Applicant representative Chris George said 7 Brew has 507 stands nationwide; the brand uses team members with iPads in the drive-through lanes and offers over 20,000 drink combinations. He acknowledged early high demand at the Naperville location, said Naperville sales volume had dropped 33% in the past three months, and cited traffic engineering showing peak queues of 34 to 35 cars, supporting the proposed 38-car queue.
• Commissioners asked about dumpster truck access and the large open grassland area. The applicant agreed to coordinate trash pickup and to work with staff on enhanced landscaping, including landscaping along the interior drive-through lane.
• The public hearing was opened and closed by voice vote, with no audience members speaking.

The Nook by Elevant (Case 2116-092325.AA.REZ.VAR.SPR)

• Elevant Development proposed annexing an 8.8-acre parcel on Wood Farm Road directly east of the post office (PIN 06-03-09-300-045-0000), rezoning from R-1 Low Density Single-Family Residential District to R-4 Multiple Family Residential District, and variances from Section 9-52 (density) and Section 9-54 (maximum dwelling units per building and minimum floor area per unit). The plan includes 288 apartments in four four-story buildings, or 72 units per building; the R-4 district allows a maximum of 15 dwelling units per acre and 24 units per building. The proposed 45-foot building height is within the 48-foot maximum. One-bedroom units would range from 625 to 700 square feet.
• The site plan provides 436 parking spaces: 268 covered and 168 exterior. Amenities would include a pool with sundeck, fitness center, party room, four courtyards, dog wash station, game rooms, co-working areas, libraries, package rooms, garden plots, bocce, gazebos, and bike storage. Exterior finishes include red brick, black accents, hardie panel, cast stone, anodized aluminum balconies, and black windows.
• Staff recommended approval. The landscape plan is conceptual and must be completed before the Village Board meeting. The annexation agreement is in draft and may include impact fees for pedestrian connectivity. Lockport Street is expected to transfer from IDOT to the Village in three to five years, possibly allowing a full-access Wood Farm Road and Lockport Street intersection.
• Applicant Todd Bryant said Elevant will own and operate the property, will not sell it, and will not use a third-party manager. He cited a Tracy Cross study estimating Plainfield absorption of 585 multifamily units per year. A school district estimate of 70 to 80 students was later put at 29 by Tracy Cross; the applicant is proposing a teacher recruitment program with one month of free rent and waived application fees. Rents would be about 4 to 5 percent higher than nearby Class A communities. Construction could start May 1, 2026, with first phase in 2027 and project completion in 2029.
• Commissioner discussion was generally supportive. Commissioner Nicholson said the density was higher than usual but made sense near downtown; Chairman Minnesota stressed safe pedestrian and bicycle connections to downtown and Wood Farm Road improvements. Commissioner Campanella asked about EV charging; the applicant said EV charging stations would be included. Staff stated no prior village project has had a density variance of this level, but staff supports it because of the downtown-adjacent location.
• The public hearing was opened and closed by voice vote. The chair then announced that Commissioner Heinen was required to recuse himself, leaving fewer than the four votes needed, so the final votes were postponed. The board voted by voice vote to continue the case to November 4, 2025, with one abstention.

2026 Meeting Schedule

• The board approved the Plan Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals 2026 meeting schedule by unanimous roll call vote.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the October 7, 2025 Plan Commission minutes.
• Recommended approval of the 7 Brew Coffee variances, special use permit, and site plan review, all by unanimous 4-0 roll call votes, subject to staff stipulations including compliance with the village engineer, the Plainfield Fire Protection District, and interior drive-through lane landscaping in lieu of foundation plantings.
• Closed the 7 Brew public hearing and The Nook public hearing; continued The Nook by Elevant case to November 4, 2025, for the required votes.
• Approved the 2026 meeting schedule.