The Tinley Park Planning Commission on Aug. 7 approved a modification to the site-plan condition for Gas & Wash at 18301 LaGrange Road, allowing the petitioner to finish the LaGrange Road retaining wall with a tinted acrylic-aggregate masonry coating and expanded landscaping. The motion passed on a 4-2 roll call (Commissioners Gaskell, Gatto, Hamilton and Chairman Gray voted yes; Commissioners Manning and Merrick voted no).

The vote removes a 2023 condition that required any retaining wall proposed at the final engineering phase be “constructed of materials substantially compatible to the buildings and fueling canopies.” Staff told the commission the property has been operating under a temporary certificate of occupancy while outstanding exterior items were completed and that the retaining-wall finish was the last remaining item. Staff said they extended the temporary certificate of occupancy and will issue a full certificate of occupancy after the installed material is inspected and accepted.

The commission’s decision matters because the wall was a stated condition of the earlier approval; commissioners debated whether the proposed coating met the commission’s expectation of a masonry finish and whether it would hold up visually and structurally over time. Michael (staff member) summarized the administrative history of the site, including prior temporary certificates of occupancy and the language of the condition on file, and said staff would allow the petitioner to seek this modification and monitor installation and inspection.

Chris Koloshevsky, architect with WT Group, described the product and the applicant’s landscaping plan. He said the proposal includes 31 trees and 16 dogwoods installed in front of the retaining wall and that the coating would provide a textured, uniform finish and a neutral backdrop for plantings. "We have 31 trees and we have 16 dogwoods," Koloshevsky said, explaining the goal that “that wall becomes just a neutral backdrop, so that then you will see the landscaping kind of contrast.”

Petitioner representatives and a village engineer described the coating they proposed: staff and consultants said the installer would grind high spots, apply a Luxon masonry coating as a sealer where recommended, then apply two coats of an Ultracrete Conflex acrylic-aggregate finish in a relaxed khaki tint. Mike Hackett, representing the petitioner, emphasized maintenance and durability. "It's mildew resistant," Hackett said when describing the product's performance near standing water. Planning staff noted manufacturer installation guidance that Luxon be used as a base in some concrete applications and that the combined system is intended to reduce future maintenance compared with replacing masonry units.

Several commissioners pressed on durability, maintenance cycles and whether the finish would appear as a long, unbroken beige surface from the road. Commissioner Manning said the core concern was accountability to the original condition and long-term appearance: "It's about accountability ... I worry that it won't look good in a couple of years," Manning said. Commissioner Merrick and others asked whether the product’s texture would conceal form lines and whether the facility’s landscaping would mature enough to visually screen the wall.

The commission accepted staff's report and the petitioner’s samples and renderings. The motion to strike the prior condition and grant site-plan architectural approval was made by Commissioner Hamilton and seconded by Commissioner Gaskell. Following the 4-2 vote, staff said they extended the temporary certificate of occupancy for 60 days to allow installation and inspections; the petitioner indicated intentions to complete work sooner.

The commission did not direct a formal follow-up study; instead the approval conditions the full certificate of occupancy on inspection and acceptance of the installed finish, the landscaping being installed per the landscape-architect recommendation, and staff verification of the work.