Corporate Reserve Developer Withdraws Application

City officials said Wednesday morning the developer of the Corporate Reserve has withdrawn the application for a zone change to allow the construction of hundreds of apartments on the site of the business park.

Meantime, the developer of the Lexington Club had asked the city to delay further consideration of its application for tax-increment financing, a key component of the funding for that project, whose cost has been estimated at $40 million to $45 million.

The St. Charles City Council, meeting Dec. 10 as the Planning and Development Committee, dealt the two controversial projects significant setbacks. Aldermen voted unanimously to recommend the City Council reject outright the Corporate Reserve application.

Aldermen also voted 7-2 to deny an application for tax increment financing that was being sought by the developer of the Lexington Club, whose land-use plan for the project a City Council committee had approved in the spring.

At the time, city officials had expected to present one or both of the projects for a formal City Council vote during its Dec. 17 meeting, but the items were not on the agenda. St. Charles Patch reported the items were hanging in limbo without a formal City Council vote.

City Administrator Brian Townsend contacted St. Charles Patch on Wednesday to explain. He forwarded a copy of a brief memo from Community Development Director Rita Tungare explaining no action would be required or could be taken on Corporate Reserve because the application had been withdrawn.

It is unclear when the Lexington Club developer will alert the city to its plans. During the Dec. 10 meeting, it was pointed out that because the developer’s land-use plan already had been approved by aldermen in the spring, it might be able to move forward should the developer find an alternative to TIF funding.

The two projects had taken sharp and vocal criticism from residents in their respective neighborhoods. Originally envisioned as a business park, the Corporate Reserve had sought to add apartments to its plan and had asked for a zoning change to accommodate the move. But neighbors feared the impact of the project on the neighborhood, particularly the impact on traffic in the area with the addition of hundreds of apartments.

The Lexington Club also also sparked criticism from its neighbors. While the housing planned for the area was not high-density house like that planned for Corporate Reserve, residents felt too many homes were planned for the site and that alternatives such as assisted living facilities for senior citizens or handicapped people ought to be considered in addition to some homes. Perhaps more controversial was the proposed TIF district to finance the mitigation of hazardous materials on the site, for demolition and site grading.

The City Council next meets Jan. 7, 2013.

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