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Residents demand fixes after draft Mount Prospect land-use map alarms homeowners
Summary
Residents at a joint village board/Planning & Zoning workshop on April 14 criticized a draft Mount Prospect 2040 future land use map that they said redesignates single-family blocks for higher-density mixed use; staff called the documents drafts and pledged more outreach and edits.
Mayor and trustees met with planning staff and dozens of residents on April 14 for a joint workshop on the Mount Prospect 2040 comprehensive plan update, a nonbinding vision intended to guide decisions about housing, commercial corridors and public facilities through 2040.
The meeting turned into a lengthy public exchange after residents said the plan’s draft future land use map marked entire single-family blocks near downtown as “high-density mixed use,” a designation they said could weaken home values and allow developers to target those properties. "This is not negligence. This is not an oversight. That is a deliberate effort to move this through before the people it affects most had a chance to organize," said resident Adam Koschick, who identified himself as living at 213 South Willie Street.
Staff stressed that the documents shown are draft guidance and are not zoning. "These versions, these plans, and the vision goals and objectives are in draft form," said Jason Shellcross, the village staff member who led the presentation. He added that "the village does not have a history of expanding the downtown into single family neighborhoods" and that any rezoning would require later public hearings and board approvals.
During the staff presentation, planner Charlie Hogan summarized a year of community engagement and data collection: roughly 1,200 engagement points, 565 survey responses and more than 2,000 website visits. Hogan outlined goals to "protect neighborhoods first," direct growth to targeted areas such as Randhurst and downtown, and encourage more walkable, mixed-use development on key corridors.
Trustees from multiple seats acknowledged residents’ concerns. One trustee moved to change the map during the meeting; the board instructed staff to treat the proposal as direction for further edits rather than a formal rezoning vote. "As long as I'm sitting here, we will not invade the residential ring," the mayor said, and Trustee Dante told residents he would not support rezoning single-family homes.
Public commenters urged several tangible steps: redesignate affected parcels as community residential, provide direct mailed notice to affected homeowners, conduct traffic and impact studies, publish a clear parcel list showing which properties are being reconsidered, and hold additional neighborhood meetings. Several speakers also proposed using the village-owned Saint Mark’s parcel as a pocket park rather than redevelopment and raised concerns about a separate proposed data center’s energy and water use.
Staff outlined next steps: staff will revise the vision/goals/objectives and the future land use map, publish the edits for public review, hold an open house and circulate a draft plan before Planning & Zoning and Village Board consideration this summer. The village emphasized the distinction between the comp plan (guidance) and zoning (legally binding) and said formal zoning actions would trigger required public notices.
The meeting closed with trustees committing to improve notice and outreach and to continue public discussion at follow-up sessions. The board recessed and set the remaining agenda items for its April 21 Committee of the Whole meeting.
