Plan commission backs conditions for 336‑unit Blackhawk Ridge apartments, agrees to parking relief and buffer plantings

Continental Properties won the Kenosha City Plan Commission's conditional approval on May 7 to establish conditions for the proposed 336‑unit Blackhawk Ridge (Phoenix Apartments) development, with commissioners and staff attaching requirements intended to address neighborhood buffering, design detail and parking concerns.

Sarah Johnson, vice president of development for Continental Properties, told the commission the project has two building types and four exterior schemes and said the team had adjusted building placement after working with engineering; she said the current plan yields roughly a 1.73 parking‑spaces‑per‑unit ratio. “I think, at right around the 1.73 parking ratio right now,” Johnson said, noting the design adjustments were prompted by public‑street geometry and engineering coordination.

The commission established conditions of approval that include staff review of the alternate elevations and a requirement to add more evergreen plantings along the residential lot lines to create a screen between the apartments and neighboring homes. A staff representative told the commission that condition 2(g) would require the landscape plan be amended “to provide more evergreen plantings along the adjacent residential properties, west and south lot lines at the northeast corner of the site,” to address neighbor concerns about buffering.

Neighbor Brenda Garcia, who said she lives in the northeast corner adjacent to the site, asked what had happened to a buffer that had been referenced in earlier materials and urged the developer to provide the agreed plantings. “We're in that little, Northeast corner ... and so they're surrounding us on two sides. ... we're just wondering what they did with that,” Garcia said. Johnson responded that the team would comply with staff requests and provide updated plans.

Staff told the commission the project also will require a future developer's agreement to fund multiple public improvements, including extension of 70th Court, installation of a traffic signal and utility work; those items will be addressed in the developers‑agreement process before construction begins. The commission and staff agreed the parking exception will be considered as a separate agenda item when the applicant returns with finalized materials; staff indicated they would notify property owners within 100 feet when that item is scheduled.

Commissioners said they appreciated the additional detail about unit mix — Johnson gave a breakdown of bedroom sizes and said roughly 38% of units are one‑bedroom, 38% two‑bedroom, 12% studio, and 12% three‑bedroom — and asked the applicant to provide portfolio statistics on occupancy and household vehicle counts if the variance is to be justified on behavioral grounds.

The commission voted to establish conditions for the conditional use permit and to approve the two certified survey maps (CSMs) that dedicate right of way for future roadway extensions, with the stipulation that the applicant return with revised, color building elevations, additional architectural articulation and the requested parking‑relief application for the next meeting.

Next steps: staff will finalize the written conditions, the applicant will supply revised drawings and the parking variance will be scheduled as a discrete item at the next plan commission meeting so commissioners can review supplemental data and public notice can be given.