Lee County hearing on rezoning of former Magnuson Hotel draws resident worries about wells, parking and traffic

Petitioners told a Lee County zoning hearing on Feb. 10 that they plan to convert the vacant Magnuson Hotel in Dixon into roughly 70 market-rate apartments and initially finance the renovation with private funds, prompting neighbors to raise questions about wells, parking and traffic and county staff to describe the rezoning as a way to limit potentially harmful commercial uses.

The petitioner’s witness, Tomasz Klimovsky, said his group purchased the former Magnuson Hotel and is developing architectural and mechanical plans to reconfigure the structure into apartments. “This is...what we agree, and that's what we are developing further,” Klimovsky said, describing a project he estimated would cost about $2 million and, he added, be financed with the owners’ funds before turning to bank loans if needed. Klimovsky and counsel said the unit mix would be similar to previous projects: studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units, with about 70 total units and a courtyard/play area where the old pool sits.

Alice Hinkle, Lee County’s zoning administrator, testified the change from a C-3 general business district to an R-4 multifamily residential district…