Norridge moves forward on comprehensive plan

Town center option

Updated: October 16, 2012 10:55AM

NORRIDGE — After gathering input, Norridge is poised to adopt a plan to guide future development.

Trustees Sept. 26 accepted a recommendation from the Norridge Plan Commission to review a proposed comprehensive plan. The board will approve the plan at a future meeting.

The plan, a joint project between the village and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, has been in the works for about a year.

Village President Ron Oppedisano said, as an urban planner, the comprehensive plan is “near and dear” to his heart.

“This is a plan for everyone in the village, whether you own a home, a business or just come to Norridge on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

He is confident the plan is reflective of Norridge’s needs.

One of the plan’s purposes is to help the village receive grant money to implement recommendations. High on the proposed plan’s list of recommendations is the creation of a town center around Montrose and Harlem avenues.

The planned center would have to address myriad issues, including pedestrian safety, public transportation, open space and traffic safety, which would include realigning the Montrose/Harlem intersection that jogs to the southwest of Harlem.

“That alignment is long overdue,” Oppedisano said. He would also support a concept called “aging in place.”

As he approaches a time when he wants to stay in Norridge, but does not want the responsibility of home maintenance, he is considering options.

“The transition from a single-family home to a condo,” he said, “we’ve got that.

“What I would like to see is a town home-type living arrangement where you have a plot of land, can do gardening, have a patio, but are part of an association” that takes care of property upkeep.

“This plan incorporates that transition,” he said.

Another of the proposed recommendations is to coordinate development in the town center area with Harwood Heights to attract larger projects that would benefit both.

Visit www.cmap.illinois.gov/norridge to view the proposed comprehensive plan.

Plan funding came from a federal Housing and Urban Development grant administered by CMAP. To gather information for the plan, CMAP conducted interviews and held public meetings with village officials, business representative and residents.

Trevor Dick, senior planner for CMAP’s Local Technical Assistance Program, said at a public hearing Sept. 20 that “all public concerns were addressed” in the plan, which will serve as a road map for development over the next 10-15 years.

“Nothing is set in stone,” he noted, explaining changes to the plan are an option.

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