29-home subdivision returns to Glencoe trustees following lawsuit, other challenges

Nearly four years after a new subdivision was approved for Glencoe, and following a series of delays that included a lawsuit from a neighbor, work is finally set to begin after the Village Board of Trustees approved a revised final plat and variations for the property.

The amended plans for the Forest Edge Subdivision, 1801 Green Bay Road, came after a brief presentation at the Village Board’s regular meeting on Thursday, May 16.

The Glencoe Village Board originally approved the Forest Edge Subdivision in October 2020. On land formerly known as the Hoover Estate, according to village documents, the original plan was to demolish a single-family home and “accessory buildings” on the 12.2-acre property and build 29 single-family residential lots.

But after the subdivision was approved, a neighbor filed a lawsuit against Hoover Owner LLC, the owner of the subdivision’s property. That lawsuit, according to village documents, was settled with the agreement to transfer 5,013 square feet of property to the southern neighbor. Combined with other economic factors, the only work that has been done on the subdivision property is the demolition of the buildings.

Rich McGowan, a planner with Glencoe’s development services department, said the approval granted by the Village Board on Thursday consists of a “very minor lot line adjustment” and did not require any action by other boards or commissions.

He added that the Village was recently informed that the current property owner plans to sell it.

“The prospective buyers fully intend to develop the subdivision in compliance with a final revised plat that you all have seen in your agenda packet,” McGowan said.

The revised development agreement also includes a change in how the properties will be built. McGowan said instead of all 29 homes being built at once, “the individual lots will now be individually sold to homebuilders and owners for development.”

He added that all the plans conform with what was approved by the Village Board in 2020.

Village Attorney Steve Elrod explained all the details of what trustees were voting on, as he referred to the process as “complicated.”

The approvals include the revised plat subdivision, which was done with the current property owner; an amendment to the original development agreement that reflects the changes; and what Elrod called a “transferee assumption agreement.”

“This enables the new property owner to assume all of the obligations that are set forth in the development agreement and relieves the existing property owner of those obligations,” he said.

Further, a second amendment to the development agreement was approved with the new prospective property owner that explains that the homes will now be sold individually. Trustees also approved a second development agreement with the prospective owner.

In addition to the vote approving the changes to the original agreements, trustees also took a second vote approving a nearly $185,000 engineering contract with Engineering Resource Associates, of Warrenville. McGowan explained that this contract is for both on-site engineering services and engineering inspections.

Trustees approved the changes unanimously and without any discussion.

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