Lincolnwood Village Board of Trustees Nov. 5 meeting

by SEAN KEENEHAN

Malnati’s Corporation is seeking permission from the village to demolish a single-family home that it owns so it can build a parking lot and an addition to Malnati’s Pizzeria, 6649 N. Lincoln Ave.

The Lincolnwood Village Board of Trustees at its meeting Nov. 5 referred to the Plan Commission the request to have the residential property adjacent to the restaurant at 6653 N. East Prairie Road rezoned from R-3 Residential District to B-1 General Business District.

Malnati’s also wants to build a 1,400-square-foot addition to the restaurant on the property for its carryout business. The addition would eliminate eight employee parking spaces, and the new lot would have 12 parking spaces.

Several residents at the meeting expressed concern about traffic, parking, privacy, noise and decreased property values if the request is approved. The trustees discussed creating a "buffer" between the restaurant and the homes to the north before referring the request to the Plan Commission for a hearing.

At a workshop discussion of the concept before the commission on Oct. 22, a representative of the restaurant said that its busiest carryout time is between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., when it fills 50 to 75 orders. One commissioner suggested that Malnati’s consider erecting a masonry wall to screen the parking lot from adjacent homes.

Additional parking for Malnati’s is available on weekends and weekday evenings in the US Bank parking lot, 6677 N. Lincoln Ave., which is across the street from the restaurant, but the village sign code does not allow a sign advertising that to be placed on the restaurant’s property.

Also at the meeting, the village board referred to the Plan Commission a request for a variation to allow paint to remain on the exterior brick of a home at 6557 N. Keating Ave. Village code does not allow paint on brick surfaces because it can trap moisture and lead to deterioration of the brick.

The brick was painted as part of an improvement project after the petitioner purchased a vacant home. The Zoning Board of Appeals voted 4-3 to recommend approving the variation, with board members voting in favor citing concerns that the brick might be damaged during the paint removal process, either by sandblasting or using paint stripper.

The trustees want the Plan Commission to consider whether the village code should be amended to allow exterior brick walls to be painted.

The board also approved a resolution estimating that its property tax levy for next year will be $5,388,624, an increase of $79,635.

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