Giving in to the demands from residents opposed to the project, the Riverwoods Village Board has postponed until April a vote on a controversial assisted-living facility for seniors.
The board decided to delay the vote on the 128-bed facility to give its potential neighbors time to gather evidence to support their case against it.
It’s only fair, neighbors say, because Marriott Senior Living Services Inc., a subsidiary of Marriott International, has made numerous presentations to village officials since first approaching them last April. Input from residents has been limited to periods of public comment during village meetings, they complain.
Mayor Roy Stanger cautioned residents that Marriott could proceed with its development in Lake County if the Village Board denies its request and doesn’t annex the property. The property is in unincorporated Lake County, and Marriott could take its case to the County Board for approval.
If Marriott goes to the county, Stanger said, Riverwoods residents will have no say in the matter.
But that’s only if Marriott is prepared to face stiff opposition from the Lake County Board, said Martha Marks, the County Board member who represents Riverwoods and would have a strong say in whatever happens in the unincorporated part of her district.
The property in question, 5 1/4 acres on the west side of Saunders Road, is currently zoned by the county as “estate” for single-family homes on large lots and would have to be changed to allow commercial development.
“Nobody should be saying that, `If you don’t give us what we want, we’ll go to the county,’ ” Marks said. “I am 99.9 percent sure that I could stop that development in the county.”
Marks and her nine-member bloc of pro-conservation board members could easily derail a supermajority of 18 votes needed by the 23-member board to override a formal objection lodged by a municipality that has already denied approval to a project, she said.
The Riverwoods Plan Commission last month recommended annexation and a special-use permit sought by the company to build the $13 million facility. The commission said it would be an asset to the community and have no detrimental effect on nearby property values.
The Village Board, which has the final say on the proposal, took a more diplomatic tack, choosing to give both sides more time.
“This is really the first time the board has had a chance to look at this whole proposal, too,” Stanger said.
In its current form, the assisted-living facility would be housed in a 78,800-square-foot building. Most of the building would be two stories in height, with a three-story wing facing Saunders Road, overlooking the parking lot.
Assisted-living facilities provide limited care for senior citizens who need help to live comfortably but do not require the kind of day-to-day care provided by a skilled-care nursing home.
Neighbors in the Thorngate subdivision, which abuts the site of the Marriott property to the west, have said the building will resemble a large hotel, something that would never be permitted in the area.
They say they would be happy with 110 beds and only two stories, but no more.
“When they make it amenable to an area characterized by single-family homes, then they will be welcomed by the community, but not before,” said Michael Greenberg, a Thorngate resident.
During their grace period, residents plan to determine the potential impact of the Marriott facility on their property values, Greenberg said. A village ordinance prohibits new development that could jeopardize the value of existing properties.
