OP_042519

4 | April 25, 2019 | the orland Park Prairie news
OPPrairie.com
Orland Park Village Board
LaGrange Road hotel project
back on the table with revisions
Jon DePaolis
Freelance Reporter
The Orland Park Village
Board will soon decide
whether or not to bring another
hotel into town after
the Development Services,
Planning and Engineering
Committee voted 3-0 on
April 15 to recommend the
full board approve the project
at a future meeting.
Hawkeye Hotels, the
petitioner of the project, is
seeking approval of a fivestory,
84,514-square-foot
hotel on approximately
3.89 acres of vacant land
located between 16160 and
16186 LaGrange Road.
The hotel is proposed to
have 158 rooms and 199
parking spaces.
Khurshid Hoda, director
of programs and engineering
services with the Village,
said the project was
unanimously approved by
the Plan Commission on
April 2.
Hoda noted that in 2016,
the petitioner submitted a
request to build two hotels
at the site. That request was
met with apprehension by
nearby residents.
Ultimately, it was referred
onto the Development
Services, Planning
and Engineering Committee,
where the request was
forwarded to the full Village
Board with no recommendation.
The request did not come
up on the board floor, and
the plan has changed since
then.
“What they are doing is
proposing one hotel with
less square footage and less
number of rooms, as well
as less parking,” Hoda said.
The new plan is roughly
a 75,000-square-foot decrease
in area and a reduction
of 68 rooms, Hoda
said. He also noted there
are 16 fewer parking spaces
being requested.
“We have looked at it,
and there is more greenspace
in this project than
what it was in 2016,” Hoda
added.
Hoda said there were
three “major elements” that
were brought up at the Plan
Commission meeting by
residents: traffic impact,
landscaping and land use
compatibility. He said staff
worked with the petitioner
and the petitioner’s consultant
to research the traffic
volume at the site and projections
of what it will look
like after the hotel would
be built.
Hoda said staff also
looked over landscaping
plans from the petitioner,
and worked with them to
include “heavy landscaping”
on the east and west
sides of the project.
Additionally, a stipulation
the Village would require
of the petitioner upon
approval is to “return within
one year of final installation
of landscaping to add
any additional landscaping
deemed necessary by the
Development Services Department
to screen or further
enhance the site,” per
the staff report.
Hoda said the Village
also received two letters
from restaurants near the
proposed site. He said both
supported the project.
Jay Patel, Hawkeye Hotels,
said they decided to
move forward with just one
hotel based on feedback
they received in 2016.
Trustee James Dodge
also confirmed with Hoda
that the Village was expecting
“a minimal amount of
traffic on 97th [Avenue].”
Patel said the permitting
phase may take up to
six months, but he hopes
to break ground in 2019
— ideally in September or
October.
“This is going to be a
metal-stud building, so
weather does not really affect
us, as long as we excavate
and have foundation
and slab done,” he said.
There were no comments
from the public during the
committee meeting.
Board members bid
farewell
Later, during the regular
meeting of the Village
Board, outgoing Trustees
Michael Carroll, Pat Gira
and Carole Griffin Ruzich
were honored by the rest
of the board members and
staff. Each were presented
with engraved watches,
flowers and street signs
with their names on them.
Board members and the
mayor also made comments
during the recognitions.
Carroll complimented
and thanked staff, as well
as the other board members.
“I do really treasure the
time I’ve spent with all six
of these board members
with whom I’ve served,”
he said.
Ruzich thanked her family,
the fellow board members
and also the public for
supporting her in past elections.
“To the residents who
Round It Up
A brief recap of action and discussion from the
April 15 meeting of the Orland Park Village Board
• Alexandra Snodsmith, of the Village clerk’s
office and co-chairperson of the Village’s Live
Well Committee, presented a check for $2,487 to
Baseball 4 All.
• The Village Board voted unanimously to approve
the appointment of Mohammed El Natour to the
Veterans Commission.
• In another unanimous vote, the Village Board
approved the appointment of Sean Kampas as
chairman of the Technology Commission.
elected me and allowed us
to do our jobs: You are the
most important people to
thank tonight,” she said.
Gira gave plaudits to the
Village staff.
“We have the best,” she
said of staff.
Gira also complimented
her fellow board members
and reflected fondly on her
time serving the public.
“It’s been sometimes
harder than others, but I
have enjoyed every minute
representing the residents
of this community,” she
said.
A seemingly unprompted
show of support
During the nonscheduled
speakers portion of
the meeting, Jeff Dexter,
a staff representative from
the American Federation of
State, County & Municipal
Employees Council 31, addressed
the Village Board
to talk about labor relations.
“Our members represent
the public image of this Village,”
Dexter said.
He said in 2012, there
was a strained relationship
between AFSCME and the
former Village manager, as
well as issues in reaching a
union agreement.
Dexter said in 2017,
when Joe La Margo was
officially named Village
manager, the relationship
with the union improved.
“Joe La Margo has
worked tirelessly with our
local union to not only
understand in detail what
we do but [also] to work
through issues to ensure
we avoid grievances and a
host of other issues that in
the past were something we
could not work out,” Dexter
said.
Later, during board comments,
Trustee Kathleen
Fenton thanked staff for
coming to honor the outgoing
trustees before singling
out La Margo for “his
dedicated work, for being
a great Village manager,
and helping all of us do our
job.”
Trustee Dan Calandriello
also complimented staff
and added that La Margo
has done “a marvelous job”
since taking over as Village
manager.
“He’s been a great Village
manager, and I just
want to thank him for all
his service throughout the
last 13 years with the Village.”
Mayor Keith Pekau by
phone April 16 declined to
comment status of LaMargo
and the Village manager’s
position in relation
to what prompted a show
of support for him at the
meeting.
Reached April 17, La
Margo, when similarly
asked about his status and
the show of support, provided
a brief statement
about his status with the
Village, noting he looks
“forward to working with
the mayor and new board.”
Dexter did not return a
call before press time seeking
further comment.
shark
From Page 3
“Basically, electricity
comes from coal, and that
ruins the environment,”
Shalabi said. “So, I created
my product, which charges
your phone by solar power
without ruining the environment.
You can carry it
around, and most people
— maybe college students
— would probably use it a
lot.”
The Sharks — local
business owners and organization
representatives
— had the opportunity to
meet with students and try
their products before the
presentations. After each
pitch, the Sharks asked
questions, shared enthusiasm
and offered advice.
Caitlin Reiter was the
first entrepreneur to give
her elevator pitch. She
explained that her Fidget
Fun: Fidget Five features
blind bags with five layers
of surprise fidgets to help
people stay focused. Each
fidget was wrapped in bubble
wrap, which also could
be used as a fidget itself.
Later, Adrienne Maynard
said she developed
her Kitten Play: Ultimate
Play Pack with her cats
Toby and Telly in mind.
“It’s a cat toy, and I
came up with this because
my cats always love to
play, but they get bored
with the cat toys we have,”
Maynard said.
Musielewicz said she
was grateful for the support
of parents, teachers,
sponsors and everyone
who helped to make the
Entrepreneur Expo a success.
She also credited students
for their efforts.
“I think that when we set
our expectations high for
the students, they will rise
to the challenge,” Musielewicz
said. “And I don’t
think it’s ever too early to
start teaching them about
personal finance and economics.”