Warrenville leaders kick off Route 59 corridor study, eye city parcels and looming TIF timeline

Warrenville Mayor Andy Johnson convened a joint workshop of the city council and planning commission to begin a multi‑step planning process for the Illinois Route 59 corridor, asking staff to collect priorities and prepare a request for proposals to hire a consultant.

City community planner Jack Masca opened the staff presentation with an overview of the planning and zoning framework that will guide the study, citing the city’s 1984 comprehensive land‑use plan, the Southwest District sub‑area plan and the recent Warrenville 'Homes for a Changing Region' housing action plan. "We got a 100% response rate on the survey," Masca told the group as staff reviewed elected officials’ preferences for future land uses.

City Director Emery summarized market drivers and the status of Tax Increment Financing district No. 4, which covers part of the corridor. Emery said the TIF "was established and will run through 12/31/2039," noting that "we have 13 years left on the TIF," a limitation staff said factors into when developers seek payback on investments and how the city times projects.

Staff and elected officials discussed survey results showing respondents described the corridor today as "fragmented," "tired," and "inconsistent," while desired future descriptors included "cohesive," "vibrant," and "redevelopment ready." The survey and staff analysis ranked sit‑down and fast‑casual restaurants, mixed‑use development and smaller retail as among the most desired uses; staff also reported a citywide retail vacancy rate of 12.2%, down about 0.7 percentage points since the previous report.

A central thread of the discussion was whether the initial RFP and study should focus narrowly on city‑owned parcels at key intersections where the municipality can exercise leverage, or instead take a corridor‑wide approach to produce a cohesive vision. Several council and commission members urged prioritizing city property to "get something started" and use it as a catalyst; others argued the city should study the entire corridor to knit together disparate nodes and protect Warrenville’s character through coordinated sidewalks, streetscape, and signage.

Staff presented a conceptual mixed‑use option for the northwest corner of Route 59 and Butterfield — a parcel long referred to locally as the Two Brothers corner — that pairs multiple fast‑casual/drive‑through pads with new multifamily housing and a public open space designed for events. Developer Phil Domenico, representing Synergy Construction & Development and the Two Brothers applicant, described the proposal during public comment and said market‑rate multifamily can be made affordable by offering smaller "rightsizing" units and shared amenities. "Our average unit size is anywhere from 600 to 700 square feet," Domenico said when explaining rent assumptions and pricing metrics.

Commissioners and council members also raised operational and safety items for the study to consider: improved pedestrian connections and sidewalks along Route 59, lighting near the Prairie Path, façade improvement or matching grant programs to help older commercial properties refresh, and the reality that the Illinois Department of Transportation controls roadway access and many signage rules along the state highway.

On timing, staff said they will draft an RFP and return it to the city council for review in February with a goal of releasing the RFP in March or April so consultant work could begin in the next fiscal year (starting May 1). The meeting ended after formal motions to adjourn both the planning commission and the council passed.

The next procedural step is the council review of the RFP draft; staff will attach estimated costs and a defined study area for the consultant scope before any solicitation is released.