Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Preservation Commission grants COA for Pioneer Place adaptive reuse, recommends zoning allowances
Loading...
Summary
The commission granted a certificate of appropriateness for Pioneer Place at 2320 Pioneer Road to convert an empty assisted‑living building into 23 independent‑living units, approve terraces, replace windows and restore masonry, and recommended a positive advisory opinion on related planned‑development and special‑use amendments; residents raised stormwater concerns that architects said would be handled with permeable pavers and gravel retention below.
The Evanston Preservation Commission voted to grant a certificate of appropriateness for work at Pioneer Place (2320 Pioneer Road), accepting an adaptive‑reuse plan that converts former assisted‑living units into 23 independent‑living units, adds an elevator tower, rehabs porches with six modest terraces and four small balconies, replaces nonoriginal windows and doors, restores masonry and installs a north‑entry canopy.
Lenny Asaro, attorney for Covenant Living Communities and Services, described the application and the related filings to amend a planned‑development ordinance and several special‑use ordinances to allow site‑development allowances (including off‑street parking in front‑yard setbacks, a pergola/accessory structure in a front yard and a six‑foot solid fence where code typically restricts height and openness).
George Kissell, a preservation consultant, told commissioners the proposal “meets the applicable standards for certificate of appropriateness,” noting most alterations are interior, terraces and balconies are modest and largely hidden by landscaping, and proposed exterior treatments preserve the building’s defining features.
Commissioners pressed architects on window muntin patterns, the visual impact of the canopy and brick matching. Architect Veil Judy said the replacement windows are being patterned on original double‑hung windows (including irregularly spaced muntins observed in historic photos) and explained canopy design choices were narrowed after Planning & Zoning feedback.
Neighbors raised concerns about adding parking and impermeable surfaces. Mike Vojtek (2308 Colfax) warned, “Grant Street floods,” and asked how additional runoff and new unit sewage flows would be handled. The project team said civil engineering has been completed and that new parking areas would use permeable pavers with underlying gravel retention to retain stormwater for required durations.
After discussion about the commission’s advisory role on zoning matters, a commissioner moved to grant the COA (citing applicable alteration, demolition and construction standards) and to convey that the proposed changes would not have a negative effect on the landmark building. The motion passed, recorded in the transcript as passing unanimously.
The commission’s resolution also included a positive advisory recommendation on the plan‑development and special‑use amendment requests within the scope of the commission’s review; any final zoning decisions will be made by the Land Use Commission or other zoning bodies.
The commission requested that staff include findings about the site and building treatment in the written COA report before transmission to the Land Use Commission.
