THURSDAY
May 14, 2 015 • $ 1.0 0
KEEPING IT COUNTRY
DAILY CHRONICLE
Singer Jo Dee Messina heads to the Egyptian Theatre on May 23 / C1
65 52 Complete forecast on page A6
daily-chronicle.com
SERVING DEKALB COUNTY SINCE 1879
LOW
HIGH
Facebook.com/dailychronicle
@dailychronicle
University Village request denied DeKalb commission votes against zoning change for proposed $18M renovation project By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com DeKALB – The DeKalb Planning and Zoning Commission effectively denied a zoning change that would allow Seattle-based Security Properties to begin an $18 million dollar renovation project on the University Village housing complex. University Village, at 722 N. Annie Glidden Road in DeKalb, is 87 percent Section 8 housing
and the project would have included bathroom, kitchen and other interior renovations. The proposed project also would have included additions to the existing community center, which would have included a security office, the addition of two playgrounds to the property and the conversion of the swimming pool to a splash park. The project also would have addressed numerous safety and security issues.
On April 29, the commission voted separately on the seven variances included with the rezoning petition. Those variances included parking ratios, landscaping and lighting. Commission members were split on the issue of density per acre, or how many dwelling units are allowed per acre of property. University Village is on 32.3 acres of land and has a total of 534 units, which makes the net density about 18 units per acre.
DeKalb’s Unified Development Ordinance limits new development to 12 units per acre. If the commission allowed rezoning, the housing complex could have stayed at the increased net density. Security Properties can’t receive funds for the project unless the property is rezoned from multifamily residential to planned unit development Michael Welsh, chair of the Planning and Zoning Commis-
sion, said at the meeting that rezoning to allow a deviation from the requirements was not a direction he wanted to move in. “Over the past 20 years we have denied many developers, and we will deny many more developers,” he said. “This is more consistent. Twelve units per acre. That’s what your right is.” There was little debate among the six commission
members present on Wednesday. After the commission went through the findings of fact document, it voted 5-1 to approve the recommendation to deny the rezoning petition as outlined. Christina Atherton was the sole dissenter. The commission’s recommendation will go before DeKalb City Council members next, and they will ultimately decide what to do about the matter.
Lawmakers unsure about pension deal
DeKALB OFFICIALS DISCUSS MUNICIPAL BUILDING MAINTENANCE
By SARA BURNETT and KERRY LESTER The Associated Press
Monica Synett – msynett@shawmedia.com
Deborah Nier, with the DeKalb Planning and Zoning Commission, speaks during the meeting Wednesday at the DeKalb Municipal Building. The municipal building, at 200 S. Fourth St., is located in a tax increment financing district, and the city will be able to use about $8.4 million in TIF money to either renovate or rebuild the nearly 50-year-old building. The TIF money will expire in 2018, so the council will have to make a decision about how to allocate that money by Dec. 31, 2018, according to Jennifer Diedrich, economic development coordinator.
Mixed views on renovations DeKalb alderman differ on priority of proposed building project By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Within the next few months, the DeKalb City Council should have another chance to determine what to do with the DeKalb Municipal Building at 200 S. Fourth St., City Manager Anne Marie Gaura said. In March, City Council members voted against funding a justification study to assess the municipal building’s needs. Mayor John Rey recommended the working committee of city staff and aldermen bring the issue back to the council after meeting among themselves to further discuss the issue. The nearly 50-year-old mu-
nicipal building is located in a tax increment financing district and the city will be able to use about $8.4 million in TIF money to either renovate or rebuild to address the structural issues in the aging building. The TIF funds will expire in 2018 unless allocated to a project. The city financed a $60,000 study in 2013 by Dewberry to explore renovation options. Dewberry found multiple deficiencies in the two-story building, including some that need to be addressed in order for the structure to meet current building and energy codes. For example, the stairs at the west entrance are deteriorated
and need to be replaced with new stairs and a handicapped-accessible ramp. Multiple areas, including the bathrooms, need to be redesigned in order to meet current Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines, according to the Dewberry study. The study found the acoustical ceiling system in the main hallway was in poor condition and showed evidence of mold. The elevator also is too small to allow for an emergency stretcher. Those are just a few of the issues laid out in the 50-page study document. Gaura said the working committee group had reconvened
since March and plans to bring the item back to the council within the next few months. Two members of the working committee have moved on from their positions, including former Public Works Director T.J. Moore and former 5th Ward Alderman Ron Naylor, so there is a necessary transition of group composition to contend with as well, Gaura said. The TIF money will expire in 2018, so the council will have to make a decision about how to allocate that money by Dec. 31, 2018, according to Jennifer Diedrich, economic development coordinator.
See MUNICIPAL, page A2
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers expressed skepticism Wednesday that they’ll be able to pass a new pension fix this spring, despite pressure from Gov. Bruce Rauner and major credit rating agencies to quickly replace a 2013 overhaul the state Supreme Court struck down. The court last week ruled the plan to address Illinois’ worst-in-the-nation public-pension shortfall by reducing benefits was unconstitutional, sending lawmakers back to square one on an issue that has dogged them for years. On Wednesday, House lawmakers held their first hearing on the Republican governor’s proposed solution, and Rauner and Senate President John Cullerton met to John discuss a separate plan Cullerton Cullerton is floating. But Rep. Elaine Nekritz, the Democratic chairwoman of the House pension committee, called the odds of a deal before the session ends May 31 “slim.” “You don’t just slap these things together,” said Nekritz, noting that the 2013 deal took years to negotiate. Illinois’ five public-pension systems are short more than $100 billion of what’s needed to pay out benefits as promised, largely because lawmakers for years didn’t make the state’s contributions. The payments now are taking up about one-fifth of the state’s general revenue fund, with next year’s payment reaching about $7 billion. Major credit rating agencies already have given Illinois the worst rating of any state in the nation. Moody’s Investors Service this week downgraded to junk bond status the credit rating for the city of Chicago and its public school district, citing the court’s ruling and the city’s own deep pension debt. The agencies also have warned that the ruling puts additional pressure on the state to find a solution. Rauner has said approving another overhaul is “essential” and that he believes it can be done before the end of the month. He wants to allow state workers and retirees to keep the benefits they’ve already earned but move them to a less-generous plan going forward that he says would save the state $2.2 billion next year. He also wants to put a constitutional amendment on the 2016 ballot that would allow future pension benefits to be cut, in hopes of heading off any future lawsuits from labor unions or retirees.
SPORTS
LOCAL NEWS
LOCAL NEWS
WHERE IT’S AT
Falling flat
‘A lot of smoke’
New position
Genoa-Kingston gets shut out in regional semifinals / B1
Embers from nearby brush fire cause damage to two barns; no injuries / A3
Crawford appointed as West Elementary principal / A3
Advice ................................ C4 Classified....................... C6-8 Comics ............................... C5 Local News.................... A2-4 Lottery................................ A2 Nation&World.............. A2, 4
Obituaries .........................A4 Opinion...............................A5 Puzzles ............................... C4 Sports..............................B1-4 State ...................................A4 Weather .............................A6
Customer’s Choice: Big Savings for Small Businesses Save money – your way! A second digital phone line for 99¢ or a second phone free. Limited Time Offer – Act Today!
dnacom.com/morebusiness
(815) 217-0267 adno=0323366