Plainfield plan commissioner questions adding more residential over commercial development

The Plainfield Plan Commission held off on hearing an update on a proposed townhome development at the southeast corner of Ridge Road and 135th Street at its Tuesday meeting until June 17, as the developer is finalizing public notices.

Still one plan commission member questioned Plainfield’s Comprehensive Plan, the village’s long-term vision which was adopted in October 2024 and how it relates to the addition of the residential development.

Playa Vista Townes is a proposed 118-unit townhome project on a 16.67-acre parcel.

“Living in Grande Park very close to this parcel, what we are struggling with in that area is commercial use,” Commissioner Andrew Heinen said, “If I need a gallon of milk, I need to get in my car and drive for 10 minutes.”

The proposed project would be adjacent to the Wikaduke Trail, an arterial roadway corridor that extends from U.S. Route 6 south of Minooka to Butterfield Road in Aurora.

“It seems like these commercial uses were allocated or were present in the original comprehensive plan and we lost some of those along the way,” Heinen said, “And that is concerning to me.”

“If this all goes residential, where is that commercial use?” he added, “My hope is that is going to happen now or in the future to accommodate the residents for simple retail.”

The proposed townhomes would include two types of two-story homes of approximately 1,700 square feet of living space with vinyl siding and cultured stone wainscot on the front and wrapping to a portion of the side elevations.

“It seems like these commercial uses were allocated or were present in the original comprehensive plan and we lost some of those along the way. And that is concerning to me.”

—  Andrew Heinen, Plainfield Plan Commission member

The townhomes would be clustered into 21 buildings that would vary from four to six units per building with a centrally located park site and a separate pedestrian respite area at the southwest corner of the development.

Forestar (USA) Real Estate Group, who is majority-owned by DR Horton, one of the nation’s largest home builders, was the applicant in the case.

DR Horton also is building the adjacent Playa Vista subdivision, a single family home community.

The Village of Plainfield planning staff gave a thumbs up to the project. The staff report to the Plan Commission recommends setbacks of buildings be staggered to “break up the plane of the buildings and provide some movement on the streetscape.”

The proposed development includes a new entrance from 135th Street as well as a neighborhood connection to Playa Vista.

For pedestrian connectivity, the proposed plan would extend an existing multi-use path located on the south side of 135th Street across the project’s frontage to the Ridge Road/135th Street intersection.

The applicant is also seeking approval of a special use permit for the development to allow for flexibility with regard to certain bulk and density standards.