Arlington Heights OKs 25-unit supportive housing project after redesign, adds staffing requirement

The Arlington Heights Village Board approved a package of land-use actions Tuesday allowing Full Circle Communities to build Grace Terrace, a 25-unit permanent supportive housing building with a stated preference for veterans with disabilities at 1519–1625 South Arlington Heights Road.

The board voted to amend the village comprehensive plan, approve a preliminary plat to consolidate seven parcels, rezone the site from the OT (office transitional) district to Institutional, and adopt a planned unit development (PUD) for the project. Each zoning action passed by supermajority margins (seven votes in favor, one opposed). Trustee Shirley was the lone no vote on the zoning matters.

The project before the board on Tuesday is a two-story design the petitioner said responds to neighborhood concerns. Denise Reyes, representing the petitioner, said the revised plan keeps the project at 25 permanent supportive-housing units, “with a preference for veterans with disabilities,” and emphasized the team elongated the building and added landscape buffers to reduce impacts on adjacent homes.

Why it matters: the approvals clear the way for a small-scale, service-enriched housing project aimed at people with disabilities and veterans in a corridor of single-family and low-rise buildings. Supporters said the building fills an unmet local need; opponents argued the site is the wrong location and raised traffic, safety and property-value concerns.

What the board approved and major conditions - Comprehensive plan amendment and rezoning. The board reclassified the long-term land use for the property from “office” to “institutional” and rezoned the…