The Village of Addison on July 21 approved a planned development — including variations and exceptions — for a 132,000-square-foot office/warehouse building at 2349 West Lake Street. The Planning & Zoning Commission recommended the project with conditions at its June 11 meeting, and the Village Board approved first-reading action after a presentation from the developer.

The project matters because it converts an underused two-story office building into industrial space at a location surrounded by industrial uses, affecting traffic, neighbors and local zoning precedents.

SOTA Industrial representative Blake Waguey told the committees the building would replace the existing two-story office building and provide approximately 200 parking spaces and 18 loading docks oriented away from Lake Street. Waguey said vacancy for suburban office space is high and there is demand for industrial product: “To put it simply, vacancy for office space is really high in the suburbs right now... Industrial, there's a lot of demand for it, with the low vacancy.”

The petitioner requested variations and exceptions consistent with nearby properties. Planning staff and the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval conditional on additional screening for adjacent residences. The commission asked the developer to install an 8-foot privacy fence along the western property line to provide screening for nearby Bloomingdale residences; Waguey said the fence will be wood or composite, built atop the existing berm, and maintained by the developer. He also described additional landscaping and evergreen plantings to increase year-round screening.

Waguey described site circulation: cars will access from Lake Street and Greenbrier Drive, while trucks will be limited to using Greenbrier Drive for the truck court. He said the building façade facing Lake Street includes more glass and a stamped-concrete look to respond to the higher-image street.

Planning staff noted the property is zoned M-4 and that office/warehouse uses are permitted in the district, so no rezoning was required. The developer acknowledged one current tenant has already terminated its lease and another uses a small portion of the existing space, which was part of the rationale for redevelopment.

The committee vote recommended approval, and the Village Board approved the ordinance on first reading. Conditions approved by the Planning & Zoning Commission — including the 8-foot privacy fence and additional landscaping along the west and Lake Street frontages — were included in the recommendation.

The developer said trucks would be screened by bump-outs and the truck court orientation; staff will monitor compliance with the landscaping and fencing conditions as part of the permit and building process.

The board did not record a separate roll-call tally for dissent beyond noting one opposing vote at the committee level; the ordinance advanced on first reading and will return as required for final adoption steps.