Vandalia council approves Riverdale subdivision final plan with developer fees after residents press traffic concerns

Vandalia City Council approved Ordinance 25-29 in its second reading on Dec. 1, 2025, finalizing the PUD final plan and record plan for Section 1 of the Riverdale subdivision at 7848 South Brown School Road. The final plan allows 58 single-family lots on roughly 21.84 acres, with 3.519 acres to be dedicated as public right-of-way. The vote followed a lengthy public hearing focused on traffic safety and funding for intersection improvements.

Residents urged the council not to allow construction to proceed until traffic-related engineering, bidding and cost determinations were complete. ‘‘If you guys choose an alternative plan … everything needs to be engineered and bid out before they pay or and they pay before you move any dirt,’’ said Alex Connor Dre., a nearby resident, summarizing several speakers’ concerns about sight lines and construction sequencing. Multiple speakers also questioned whether the developer would bear construction overruns.

Council members debated who should pay for improvements identified in a traffic impact study for the Little York and Brown School intersection. Councilmember Pollock said asking a developer to pay the entire cost for road problems that predate the development ‘‘is an insane ask, I believe.’’ Other members described the study as evidence of an immediate safety issue that requires action now.

After the debate, Councilman Follick moved — and Vice Mayor Blakesley seconded — a substitute motion to approve the ordinance with conditions listed in Exhibit B and to accept fees in lieu of direct construction at the Little York/Brown School intersection. Those fees were described in the motion as payable in three equal payments totaling $175,480 (the developer’s estimated share) with a 20% contingency. The motion passed on roll call, 4–3.

The successful motion also requires city staff to approve engineering design and construction cost estimates, public bidding and other street and infrastructure improvements prior to final record plan approval. Council and residents stressed that staff approval and public bidding are prerequisites to implementation; the motion text also specified that the developer would place funds upfront or in escrow for their share plus contingency.

Speakers during the public hearing included local residents who cited a shortcutting/speed problem on South Brown School Road, the steep grade and limited sight lines near the proposed entrance, and past traffic studies. Robert Shanahan noted the city’s review of the developer’s estimate flagged missing line items and low unit-cost assumptions, saying the real construction cost could be higher when work begins. Residents asked council to require completed engineered plans and bids before earth-moving starts.

Council members emphasized different priorities: some said the road issues predate the development and the city must start addressing them; others reiterated that requiring 100% developer payment would be unreasonable and could discourage investment. Before the final successful motion, an earlier proposal to require the developer to pay all improvement costs upfront failed.

Next steps: staff will review and approve engineering, bid documents and cost estimates before final record plan approval, and the fees-in-lieu payment schedule becomes a condition of the approved second-reading ordinance. The council also discussed the possibility of a referendum and the paperwork residents would need to pursue a ballot measure.