Huntley housing plan with mostly rentals gains traction with new location

For a second time, Huntley officials have reviewed plans for a new housing development after trustees in February said they liked the idea but not the location.

The Village Board didn’t vote on plans for a Heyday Huntley development at a recent meeting, but members indicated that they liked plans for a new location for the proposed development off Route 47, just south of Deicke Park and across from Dean Street.

The development, which primarily consists of two- and three-bedroom rentals, would back up to the Lions Chase subdivision and would have several acres of Route 47 frontage that could be used for commercial development.

Officials reviewed a previous iteration of the housing development earlier this year that would have been off Route 47 near Regency Parkway and Powers Road. Trustees liked the idea, but they wanted to keep the site along Route 47 for commercial use and encouraged Heyday to think about another location in town. Several board members said they were happy to see the developer come back, and Heyday representatives said they felt the new site is better.

Current plans include about 260 units, including 191 single-story attached rental homes, 54 two-story rear-loaded rental townhomes and 17 traditional single-family homes that would be for sale.

The attached homes would have 1,898 to 2,142 square feet, while townhomes would have 1,919 to 2,023 square feet.

Heyday wouldn’t build the single-family homes but would outsource that to other builders. However, Heyday would own the rental units, Huntley Director of Development Services Charlie Nordman said. Heyday representatives confirmed that there would be a property manager and 24/7 maintenance.

Heyday developer Ryan Swingruber said the company tries to offer an alternative to homeownership. He said the company is targeting older demographics who have different needs with a single-story product. Heyday’s model also opens the housing market for and the company targets younger people who might want to buy a home but can’t afford it, Swingruber said.

“It works at both ends of the dumbbell,” Swingruber said.

Noting stigmas surrounding rentals, Swingruber said the apartment company does background, employment and income checks, and each unit has a covered front porch and side patio.

“We want to create a community that feels like you own the place but [has] all the benefits of rental,” Swingruber said.

The property has a lot of wetlands and floodplains. Swingruber said the company recognizes that will pose a challenge. He said the company is evaluating next steps.

Still, Swingruber said he’s happy the site earlier this year didn’t work out because he is much more “excited” about the Dean Street location.

Nordman said the developers sent in a second-option site plan as they work through the wetland issues. The second plan aligns an access point to the development with Dean Street. The entrance and more commercial space are the main differences between the two plans, Swingruber said.

Nordman said access would be somewhat dictated by wetland mitigation but also the Illinois Department of Transportation because Route 47 is a state road. Nordman said a full traffic study would happen as part of the development.

Trustee Ric Zydorowicz asked if Heyday would be building the single-family homes, and Swingruber said Heyday would build the infrastructure for the homes, such as water and sanitary sewer lines, roads and a roundabout.

Since the February meeting, two trustees opted not to seek reelection, and two new trustees, Don Walz and Marilynn Berendt, joined the board after running unopposed in the April election.

Berendt said she was glad Heyday came back. She asked whether there would be a meeting with Lions Chase residents. Swingruber said “absolutely” and that he would work with Nordman to get something set up.

Walz said the development was what the Huntley community needed. He said he, too, liked the idea when first proposed but not the location.

With the new location, Village President Tim Hoeft said, “Now we’ve got [a location] that I think fits even better.”

He agreed there is a need for it.