Deerfield board gives preliminary approval to 147‑unit Parkway North townhome development

The Deerfield Board of Trustees on June 3 gave preliminary approval to a plan to redevelop Parkway North Lots 5 and 8 as a 147‑unit townhouse-style rental development, including 15 units designated to meet the village's affordable‑housing requirement.

The board voted unanimously to conceptually amend the comprehensive plan, rezone the property from I‑1 (office/research/restricted industrial) to R‑5 (general residence), and grant preliminary approval for an amended Parkway North planned unit development. The approvals are preliminary only and subject to final PUD review and additional conditions, including a preliminary plat for resubdivision and the applicant obtaining consent from the other Parkway North property owners.

Bend Point Real Estate principal Nick Marietti and architect Joe Mashek of DSP Design told trustees the proposal covers a roughly 10‑acre site along Sanders Road and includes a mix of townhouse types, courtyard homes and eight at‑grade one‑bedroom units. Marietti said the project is planned as rentals “at this time,” and that 15 affordable units will be family‑style two‑ and three‑bedroom units aimed at attracting households such as young teachers. Mashek described buffers and landscaping that preserve an existing 50‑foot outlot and a 23‑foot buffer and said the design ties the site into the Parkway North trail system.

The developer asked for several exceptions to local standards: a variation in required lot area based on unit mix; permission for private streets within the development; exceptions to perimeter and private‑street setbacks; an increase in maximum building height to 45 feet (the code maximum cited is 35 feet); and an exception that would allow the primary identification sign to be closer than 25 feet to the property line. The plan commission recommended approval 4–0, and the board’s motions carried unanimously.

Trustees questioned tenure, sustainability and connectivity. One trustee pressed whether units would be for sale; Marietti replied they are planned as rentals but the developer wants to retain flexibility. Trustees also asked about electric‑vehicle charging capacity and whether solar panels had been considered; the developer said EV charging capacity would be provided and that sustainable features are under consideration.

A resident who spoke during the public‑comment period urged the board to require other developers (she named Pulte) to preserve a natural berm adjacent to neighborhood properties, saying residents’ appraisal and engineering evidence had been ignored in prior approvals. The board did not alter the Parkway North motions in response to that comment; the project’s final PUD review and any applied conditions will be considered at a later meeting.

Next steps: the developer said it expects to return with a final PUD application later in 2024 for final village review and required consents from Parkway North property owners.