Lockport advances Serenity Landing to action after hours of presentations and public comment
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Summary
After a lengthy staff briefing and more than an hour of public comment raising concerns about schools, traffic and the local horse community, the City of Lockport Committee-of-the-Whole agreed to move the proposed Serenity Landing planned development (ordinance 25-021/resolution 25-101) to 'action' for the Dec. 17 council meeting while staff and the developer provide additional documents and agreements.
The City of Lockport on Dec. 2 moved consideration of the large Serenity Landing planned development to a formal action vote at the councils next meeting, after a detailed staff presentation and an extended public comment period.
Lance, a city planning staff member, told the committee the 183-acre proposal occupies a legacy site that was partially developed in 2007—6, and that the current plan would deliver roughly 633 housing units across product types (staff described roughly 212 detached single-family homes, 181 attached single-family units, and about 240 apartment units) plus a 1.76-acre commercial parcel and extensive open space and trails. Lance said the plan adds retention ponds and other stormwater improvements to meet the updated Will County stormwater ordinance and that the developer will construct public street and utility improvements required under an annexation agreement.
Why it matters: the proposal would re-activate a long-vacant, partially graded site near Oak, Briggs and Bridal streets and could change traffic patterns, school enrollment and land use along Lockports south side. Staff emphasized the project is phased and that many public improvements are developer-funded, but residents and nearby institutions said more information is needed before the council adopts final approvals.
Fairmont School District Superintendent Dr. Daniels told the council the district projects "approximately 150 students" from the build-out and urged careful review of the fiscal and operational impacts. "We are facing decreases in EVF as well as state and federal funding," Dr. Daniels said, adding that while the district expects about $1,300,000 in impact fees and roughly $2,400,000 in longer-term property-tax revenue from the subdivision, those funds arrive over time while the district must educate students immediately.
Several residents and community stakeholders echoed concerns about traffic on Oak and Briggs, potential air-quality and dust impacts during a multi-year construction program, and effects on a substantial local equestrian economy. Equine surgeon Bridget Peel warned of health risks to horses, saying "Horses are 15 times more sensitive to inhaled particulate matter than humans," and asked the city to study long-term consequences for nearby stables and training operations.
Staff responses and safeguards: city staff and the city attorney described the development review mechanics and limits on council discretion, noting earlier concept approvals and existing zoning rights for the property. Lance and other staff said the developer must post a letter of credit (a performance guarantee) equal to 110% of the engineers opinion of probable cost for public improvements and then a 12-month maintenance bond (10% of that estimate) after project acceptance; staff estimated the letter-of-credit requirement could be in the neighborhood of $10,000,000 based on public-improvement cost estimates. The developer also agreed to update traffic studies after each phase and to fund required turn lanes and potential future traffic signals if warrants are met; Will County has asked for a separate intergovernmental agreement (IGA) related to signal costs, which staff will add to the Dec. 17 agenda.
What the council did: rather than approve the ordinance (25-021) and related resolution (25-101) on consent, councilmembers voted to place CD3 on the Dec. 17 action calendar so members can consider the development agreement, the IGA and additional details requested by the public. Councilmembers and staff said the extra time will allow for better documentation of fiscal impacts, final development agreements and clarifications on buffers, lighting and landscape mitigation.
Public reaction: the public-comment record included letters and more than a dozen in-person speakers representing the Fairmont School District, local horse owners and businesses, adjacent residents, and the pastor of a church on the site who said the project would finally make the property usable for the community. Speakers urged a range of mitigations: stronger landscape buffers, house-side light shields, dust-control plans during construction, signal warranting and design changes to move higher-density uses away from immediate agricultural/equestrian parcels.
Next steps: the council will reconvene on Dec. 17 with the developers development agreement and the county IGA added to the packet; that meeting is expected to include a formal motion and roll-call vote on the ordinance and any annexation agreement. Until an action vote occurs, the project remains at the plan-development consideration stage.
(Reporters: Staff presentations and public comments recorded at the Dec. 2 Committee-of-the-Whole meeting; the council placed ordinance 25-021/resolution 25-101 on the Dec. 17 action calendar.)
