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Board tables proposed Fatpour Tapworks at 200 S. Main after extended debate over parking and alley access
Summary
The Mount Prospect Village Board deferred action on a proposed Fatpour Tapworks Planned Unit Development for 200 S. Main after lengthy questioning from trustees and neighbors about parking, alley access, deliveries and stormwater. Staff will return additional parking and access analyses at the board's next meeting.
A planned Fatpour Tapworks restaurant proposed for 200 South Main Street drew an extended review and was tabled to the board's next meeting after trustees and nearby residents raised concerns about parking, alley access and stormwater.
Staff described the submission as a preliminary and final planned unit development (PZ 3125) for a roughly 7,000-square-foot mixed-use restaurant with a substantial patio and a proposed on-site count of eight parking stalls, which staff said effectively represents fewer than the code-requirement equivalent once forgiven areas are taken into account. Village staff noted the site, a former gas station foundation, was demolished in 2017 and the project proposes minor setback relief on the north and east, a pergola encroachment, and a 5.7-foot dedication to widen an existing alley to 24 feet.
"The village parking requirement forgives the first 2,500 square feet of the project," Village staff (Jason) told the board, describing downtown parking policy and ongoing parking study work. He also described proposed stormwater measures, including bioswales on the north end of the site and a chambered detention system beneath certain parking stalls.
Petitioners, represented by Arthur Holmer (founder/CEO of The Restaurant Group) and architect Neil Thompson (RE Group Architects), said the concept is a "polished casual" restaurant and taproom geared toward families and events rather than a neighborhood bar or dance venue. Holmer emphasized event-driven operations and described the brand's experience in denser, pedestrian-oriented locations.
Trustees and residents pressed on several operational and site questions: how employees would park, where deliveries and beer trucks would load, whether delivery vehicles might block the abutting single-family driveway, and how patrons would safely enter and exit the alley onto Evergreen Boulevard. One trustee said, "I'm not comfortable voting for this until we do figure out the parking," reflecting repeated requests for concrete parking solutions tied to the planned use.
Staff told the board there is a parking rider in the proposed Saint Mark's acquisition that would require the village to provide access to at least 30 parking stalls on or within 500 feet of the church property prior to altering that lot; staff also said they are pursuing a range of potential measures, from striping new stalls to converting a fire lane to parking or other capital solutions.
Public speakers offered both support for downtown revitalization and detailed concerns about access for the adjacent house and the potential for delivery congestion in the alley.
A motion to waive the second-reading requirement did not receive a second; the board agreed to table the matter for a second reading in two weeks and asked staff to return with updated downtown parking-study results, a Saint Mark's site/parking plan and any other measures to mitigate alley access and delivery impacts.
Next steps: staff will prepare supplemental materials about parking capacity and alley circulation for the board's next meeting, at which the petition will return for further consideration.
