The City Council has unanimously rejected a developer’s application to construct a three-story, 29,000-square-foot office building on 1.4 acres on Summit Avenue.
Although the city’s advisory Planning and Zoning Board had recommended approval of the project, aldermen voted down Andrew Schubkegel’s petition to annex the property at 1S337 Summit Ave., which is the site of an old farmhouse, and build the 46-foot-tall office building. While there are many similarly sized buildings in Oakbrook Terrace, Schubkegel’s proposal encroached too much on its residential neighbors and didn’t provide enough buffering, said Ald. Ingrid Durham.
“I wouldn’t mind annexing that parcel, but I’m not in favor of a three-story building going all the way back to Buttercup Lane,” she said. “If the property were cut in half, with the front half on Summit being commercial and the back half remaining residential, it would conform better with what’s there and to our comprehensive plan.”
Attorney Wally O’Brien, who represents Schubkegel, criticized aldermen for rejecting the plan, noting that at a working meeting several weeks ago, council members had showed strong interest in his plan.
“They were shown an artist’s rendering of the three-story commercial office building, and that plan never changed,” he said. “I think it’s very unfair treatment of my client when the council told us they were interested in annexing our property, and our plan passed muster with the Planning and Zoning Board, and then the council turned around and said no. Frankly, I think my client was sandbagged.”
