Wilmette’s plan commission will review at its next meeting Nov. 3 a Housing Opportunity Development Corporation proposal for a three-story apartment building with 20 affordably priced units to be built on the site of the former Wilmette American Legion post.
Richard Koenig, executive director of the Techny-based affordable housing development and management group, said Oct. 13 that his group, also known as HODC, has submitted paperwork for a planned unit development project at 1925 Wilmette Ave. to village officials.
“Going before the village plan commission is the first step in the process,” he said.
A positive recommendation from the plan commission would still require final approval by the village board, according to Wilmette Community Development Director John Adler.
HODC’s next hurdle is financing, which will be contingent upon village approval, Koenig said.
Floor plans included in the proposal show that the development corporation intends to construct a building with 10 studio and 10 one-bedroom apartments on the second and third floors. The smaller ground floor would comprise a community room and office space, while the rest of the ground floor would be used for open-air parking stalls.
In June Koenig’s corporation bought the Wilmette Avenue property from the Peter Huerter American Legion Post 46 for $464,000. Members of the post, which had called the two-story former schoolhouse home since 1946, put the property up for sale last February after members determined they could no longer pay to maintain the building, according to Legion post commander Mike Jonscher.
If the project is ultimately approved and built, it will be the first time affordable housing units have been built in Wilmette since affordable units were included in the Mallinckrodt condominium complex in the mid-2000s, Adler said at the time.
The former Legion property lies just west of the intersection of Wilmette Avenue and Ridge Road. It is currently commercially zoned, Adler said. A Caldwell Banker listing for the property at the time of the sale described it as having 75 feet of street frontage and a lot depth of almost 200 feet.
Adler confirmed the Nov. 3 hearing, which is set to start at 7 p.m. at Village Hall. He said the proposal is going before the plan commission, rather than the zoning board of appeals, because the commission reviews planned unit developments, also known as PUDs.
At the time of the sale, Adler had suggested that the housing corporation could seek a PUD approval, since its proposal would be for a strictly residential building, something that is not a permitted use in a commercial zone. Mixed-use buildings with both residential and retail or office space can be built on commercial property without municipal approval, he said.
One of the standards for PUD approval is for owners to prove that their project provides a public benefit, Adler said in July. He also said the village had contacted HODC when the Legion property came up for sale, presenting it as a property that could be suitable for affordable housing.
Twitter: @pioneer_kathy
