Warrenville council postpones decision on 91‑unit Cantera Point townhomes after lengthy public comment

Warrenville’s City Council voted unanimously to continue consideration of the Cantera Point townhouse proposal to the Oct. 6 regular meeting after a community development director’s presentation and an extended public‑comment period during Tuesday’s meeting.

Amy Emery, Warrenville’s director of community development, told the council the proposal before the city is a market‑rate, 91‑unit townhouse development on Maycliff Drive that has gone through pre‑application review, neighborhood meetings and three plan commission hearings. Emery said the plan commission recommended approval by a 7–2 vote and that the developer reduced the proposal from 103 to 91 units and added amenities including outdoor play space, native landscaping and additional guest parking. Emery also said the site has about 30 feet of fill and requires geo‑pier foundation work with costs the city estimates at approximately $1,000,000 — a constraint she said limits some development options and helps explain the proposed product type.

Why it matters: residents who live near the site told the council the project would worsen traffic and road‑safety problems, strain local services, and change the character of nearby single‑family neighborhoods. A number of speakers also raised concerns about the chosen developer, identified in the public record as Doctor Horton, citing online complaints and litigation that they said callers could verify. Councilmembers said they wanted more time to review materials and to consider the public feedback.

Residents cited traffic, safety and density concerns. "I urge you to vote no to directing your lawyer to draft an ordinance — don't waste our taxpayers’ money," said Steve Alish, who said he lives facing the proposed project and said he had collected signatures on a petition opposing the development. Melissa Hogan, who lives near Warrenville Road, said the traffic study does not reflect local driving behaviors she experiences and that "adding those people... will be worse" for adjacent streets. Other speakers noted a petition with roughly 400 signatures (one speaker said 413 signatures) and urged the council to find alternatives such as senior or lower‑density housing or commercial uses.

Amy Emery said professional traffic and school analyses supported staff and the plan commission’s recommendation. Emery said School District 200 provided the district’s school‑generation tables and that district officials reported declining enrollment and available capacity to accommodate the project. On traffic, Emery said the applicant’s professional traffic engineer estimated the proposed townhome use would have less traffic impact than other office or light‑industrial uses previously considered for the parcel.

Council action and next steps. With a motion to continue on the floor, the council conducted a roll‑call vote and recorded the following: Alderman Ashauer — Aye; Alderman Davalos — Aye; Alderman Berry — Aye; Alderman Wilkie — Aye; Alderman Kreukenberg — Aye; Alderman Weidner — Aye; Alderman Agustinovich — Aye. The motion to continue item 6f to the Oct. 6 regular meeting passed. No formal direction was given to the city attorney to draft an ordinance at Tuesday’s meeting.

Other clarifications. The city administrator clarified a separate resident concern about rising sewer bills: Warrenville sends wastewater to Naperville for treatment, the administrator said, and Naperville is upgrading a 50‑year‑old treatment plant with an estimated total cost of about $22,000,000; Warrenville represents about 9% of the flow and is paying its share of that project, not a fee tied to the Cantera Point proposal.

Votes at a glance (items approved earlier under consent agenda) — council approved the consent agenda (with item 6f removed) including: acceptance of plan commission recommendations and passage of ordinances listed on the consent agenda (as read into the record), receipt and filing of minutes from multiple commissions, and authorization of invoice and wire‑transfer reports. (Ordinance and resolution identifiers were read aloud by staff as recorded in the meeting.)

What’s next: The Cantera Point item (6f) will return to the council’s Oct. 6 agenda. Councilmembers said they expect to re‑examine the submitted materials, consider resident input and ask follow‑up questions before deciding whether to direct the city attorney to prepare an ordinance or to take other action.

Sources: remarks and motions recorded at the Sept. 2, 2025 Warrenville City Council meeting; presentation by Amy Emery, director of community development; multiple resident public comments and council roll call recorded on the meeting record.