VILLAGE OF WILMETTE Village Center Master ... - The Lakota Group

VILLAGE OF WILMETTE 

Village Center Master Plan 

Community Workshop #2 June 10, 2010

TEAM OVERVIEW 

The Lakota Group 

• Planning 

• Urban Design 

• Historic Preservation 

• Community Relations 

Goodman Williams Group 

• Market Overview 

• Demographic Analysis 

Gewalt Hamilton Associates 

• Transportation/Traffic 

• Parking Issues 

Duncan Associates 

• Zoning Advisor 


Village Center Master Plan

PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE 

PAC Members 

• Thomas Nathan, Committee Chair 

• Thomas Gordon 

• Christopher Canning, Village President 

• Brendan Kelly 

• Charmain Borys Later 

• Stephen Leonard 

• Charles Cook 

• Daniel McCaffery 

• Elissa Morgante 

• Jack Rosenberg 

• Randy Tieman 

RTA Representatives 

• Nicole Nutter, RTA 

• David Kralik, Metra 

• Ryan Richter, Metra 

Village Staff 

• John Adler, Director of Community Development 

• Lucas Sivertsen, Business Development Planner 

• Tom Radak, Pace 

• Adam Eichenberger, Pace 

• Lisa Roberts, Assis. Dir. Of Community Dev. 

• Erika Fabisch, Planner I 



PROJECT OVERVIEW 

Project Goals|Mission 

• Create clear, documented & shared vision for the Village Center that supports transitoriented 

development. 

• Create and test a range of development concepts and strategies that enhance and 

revitalize the Village Center. 

• Develop an optimal short range and long range land use strategy and framework . 

• Attract land uses and development more compatible with the goals, needs, 

infrastructure and character of the community. 



PROJECT OVERVIEW 

Project Goals|Mission Continued 

• Establish framework for future that emphasizes high quality, sustainable site and 

building design. 

• Create set of planning & urban design tools and recommended codes that allow 

creativity while enhancing predictability. 

• Maximize Village Center’s transit-oriented nature by improving traffic/parking 

efficiency and providing better linkages for pedestrians and bicycles. 

• Identify historic and cultural resources and fold their reuse and preservation into a 

sound sustainable redevelopment strategy. 



VILLAGE CENTER STUDY AREA 

LAKE 

GREEN BAY 

CENTRAL 

WILMETTE 

11TH 

LINDEN 



PLANNING PROCESS UPDATE 

• 4 meetings with Planning Advisory Committee 

• Conducted field work/gathered data on current 

market & physical/transportation conditions 

• Assessed and reviewed previous Village studies 

• Facilitated numerous Focus Groups with Village 

leaders, staff, property/businesses owners and 

residents. 

• Held initial Community Workshop 

• 3 Open Houses for resident input 

• Conducted analysis and wrote State of the Village 

Center report 



STATE OF THE VILLAGE CENTER: ANALYSIS SUMMARY 

Land Use 

• Village Center is primarily commercial with some institutional & residential 

• West of tracks more auto-oriented…east of tracks older buildings, more 

walkable 

• 3 major institutional uses: Village Hall (east) and Post Office & Library (west) 

• Few multi-family residential options in Village Center 

• Limited open space amenities in Village Center 




Zoning 

• Majority of Study Area zoned VC (Red) with some GC-1 

(Brown) west of Green Bay 

• Some R-2 (Townhouse Residence) around edges (Yellow) 

• VC zoning is fairly restrictive in terms of allowed uses and 

development standards 

• Majority of allowed uses require special use approval for 

both VC and GC-1 

• VC allows max. height of 3 stories or 32 feet, whichever 

is less 

• GC-1 allows max height of 2.5 stories or 30 feet 

• Both VC and GC-1 focus on controlling uses and overall 

building size… 

No controls aimed at promoting mixed-use, 

pedestrian and transit-oriented environment or 

physical character of development. 




Physical Conditions 

• Some buildings facades have been modified…detracts from character 

• Surface parking lots on Green Bay create unattractive environment 

• Green Bay streetscape could use improvements for safety and 

appearance 

• Some buildings could use clean-up or maintenance 

• Village Center needs better “green” open spaces and “seating 

pockets” 

• Downtown wayfinding and signage is lacking at entries…no unified 

theme 

• Some buildings have unattractive or oversized signs 



COMMUNITY INPUT SUMMARY…WHAT WE HEARD. 

• The Village Center can be improved physically 

• The Village Center lacks density 

• Green Bay is a barrier 

• Need more variety of entertainment & restaurants 

• Zoning should be more predictable 

• More recreational open space opportunities 

• Mixed-use development should be considered 

throughout Village Center 

• Potential parking decks 

Metra/Library sites 

should be considered at 

• No reason to stay in Village Center and linger 

• No nighttime activity…everything closes at 6 pm. 

“The Village Center should 

be the focal point of 

Wilmette; a place where 

people want to go.” 




Transportation 

• Wilmette Metra Station 3 rd most daily boardings on UP-North 

Line 

• 3 Pace routes in Village Center…ridership is down, but certain 

user groups rely on service 

• Traffic “Hot spot” challenges 

• Lake Avenue/11 th Street/Wilmette Ave. 

• Linden Avenue/Poplar Avenue 

• Central Avenue west side at alley 

• Park Avenue/Washington intersection controls 

• Sidewalk and bike gaps still exist throughout Village Center 

• Pedestrian crossings at Green Bay are uncontrolled at times 




Parking 

• Occupancy counts confirm deficiencies certain areas, but 

overalll surplus in Study Area 

• Library, Post Office and Starbucks areas remain a concern 




Real Estate Market 

• Positives: Attractive demographics, busy train station, civic “heart” 

• Existing Businesses: 

• 166 businesses (two-thirds east of tracks 

• 12 vacancies at time of survey 

• 17 eating and drinking establishments (all but 2 east of the tracks) 

• Retail stores represent less than a third of all businesses 

Retail opportunities: 

• Limited sites for new retail…mostly small-scale infill 

• Visibility and traffic counts only on Green Bay Road 

• Expenditure potential leakage in a number of categories, BUT competition from: 

Edens Plaza, Old Orchard, Plaza del Lago, Central Street, Downtown Evanston, The 

Glen, Old Orchard, etc… 




Real Estate Market 

• Village Center is primarily convenience and specialty (1-mile trade area) 

• Potential demand in following areas: 

• Full- and limited-service restaurants and bars 

• Specialty food 

• Apparel and accessories, gifts 

• Home furnishings (already has a cluster of retailers) 

• Other commercial opportunities: Professional service firms, such as medical/dental offices, 

preferably on upper floors 

Residential Opportunities: 

• Potential for additional multi-family development to serve various segments of market: 

• Senior households at various income levels 

• Downsizing “empty nesters” 

• Divorced parents or single-parent households 

• Younger working households 




Opportunity Sites: Main “Target Sites” 

•Ford Site/Block 

•Village Hall Site 

•Union Pacific parking 

lot/Chase property 




Opportunity Sites 



DEVELOPMENT CONCEPTS 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MIN CONCEPT A 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MID CONCEPT B 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MAX CONCEPT C 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MAX CONCEPT E 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MAX CONCEPT E1 



WEST GREEN BAY ROAD: MAX CONCEPT H 



WEST VILLAGE GREEN HALL: BAY MIN ROAD CONCEPT CONCEPTS A 



VILLAGE HALL: MID CONCEPT B 



VILLAGE HALL: MAX CONCEPT C 



VILLAGE HALL: MAX CONCEPT D 



CHASE/U.P. BLOCK: MIN CONCEPT A 



CHASE/U.P. BLOCK: MID CONCEPT B 



CHASE/U.P. BLOCK: MAX CONCEPT C 



CHASE/U.P. BLOCK: MAX CONCEPT D 



IMPERIAL MOTORS BLOCK: CONCEPT A 



IMPERIAL MOTORS BLOCK: CONCEPT B 



IMPERIAL MOTORS BLOCK: CONCEPT C 



GREEN BAY ROAD SOUTH: CONCEPT A 



GREEN BAY ROAD SOUTH: CONCEPT B 



GREEN BAY 

ROAD 

STREETSCAPE 

CONCEPT 



GREEN BAY 

ROAD 

STREETSCAPE 

CONCEPT 



GREEN BAY ROAD STREETSCAPE: CROSS SECTION A 



GREEN BAY ROAD STREETSCAPE: CROSS SECTION B 



CHARACTER IMAGES: CHASE/U.P. BLOCK LOOKING NORTHEAST 



CHARACTER IMAGES: GREEN BAY ROAD LOOKING SOUTH 



CHARACTER IMAGES: WEST GREEN BAY BLOCK LOOKING SOUTHWEST 



Breakout Tables 

• Discussion about Concepts 

• Preferences, Ideas, Likes/Dislikes 

• Report back to the larger group

VILLAGE OF WILMETTE Village Center Master ... - The Lakota Group

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