April 12, 2011

Lake Bluff Village Board Approves Lifting Age Restrictions from Stonebridge Development

By Alaina Buzas
Lake Forest-Lake Bluff Patch.com

The Lake Bluff Village Board approved the removal of an age restriction on the Stonebridge property by a 6-1 vote at its Monday night meeting.

Trustee Rick Lesser cast the only “no” vote.

After receiving recommendations from both the Zoning Board of Appeals and Plan Commission, the Board passed an ordinance amending the existing ordinance that included the age restriction.

Before voting, each trustee voiced their opinion on removing the age restriction and had the chance to have their concerns addressed by both Chris Rentz of Stonebridge Lake Bluff, LLC and SunCal representative Stan Brown, the company’s senior vice president of real estate development.

Each trustee raised gave their own opinions on the amendment and raised issues including property values, potential future challenges, historical preservation and whether SunCal was committed to developing the property versus turning around and selling it within six months.

Trustee John Josephitis said his biggest concern with lifting the age restriction and moving forward with SunCal was how family homes in Stonebridge would affect the property values of surrounding homes.

According to Brown, the duplex and single-family homes planned to be constructed would sell for between $600,000 and $800,000. The condominiums within the historic structures on the property would run for less, although figures have not yet been determined.

Brown also said the homes would offer many customized items to buyers, such as appliance packages. According to Brown, the designs aren’t final but upgrade packages will be available that will increase the value of the homes.

Trustee Marina Carney, who is also a realtor, said she believed the development SunCal has planned would improve the value of the surrounding homes.

“It also has a huge benefit to the [surrounding homes] if the prices are $600,000 to $800,000 or better, as described, because I think that the houses in the Terraces (just east of Stonebridge) will have the ability to go from their average of $440,000 to $600,000 in their own improvement if homeowners choose to stay in their neighborhoods,” Carney said.

Carney supported the removal of the age restriction, citing that any restrictions on a property are being challenged in the current struggling housing market.

“If we want this development to be successful, I think we need to give it everything we can to move forward in a positive fashion,” Carney said.

Lesser has vocally opposed the Stonebridge development since its beginning stages and said he will continue to do so.

Lesser said the board was being asked to lift the age restriction “in exchange for nothing,” citing a number of issues he believed needed to be addressed before the ordinance could be amended, including traffic, market values and a reduction in density for the property. According to Lesser, changing the legal designation as an age restricted community to simply an age targeted development isn’t much better.

“The age target simply means families will move into a development that is not well designed for them,” Lesser said.

Lesser also said he would rather see the bank take control of the property over SunCal, believing a fresh start is what the property needs to succeed.

“The developer has said that this project will succeed with some fresh capital and energy. But Stonebridge did not fail for lack of capital or energy. Stonebridge failed because it was a bad idea,” Lesser said.

Trustee Brian Rener posed the question of SunCal’s commitment to the project, but Brown assured the board that the California-based company is excited to start the project and see it to its fruition. “We’re a family-owned company that prides itself on developing properties,” Brown said.

The Board will vote again at its April 25 meeting on the final contract between Stonebridge and SunCal.

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