Applicant says redesign cuts units, adds setbacks and circulation fixes in Park Ridge proposal

The applicant team presented a revised design that they said was intentionally responsive to concerns raised at earlier hearings. Architect Tio Suarte summarized the principal changes: removal of a full residential floor on the residential side, a 10-foot setback on the 4th floor facing Garden and 3rd Streets to reduce perceived height and bulk, and a repositioning of the outdoor event space so its noise would be oriented toward Tuohy/3rd Street rather than Garden Street.

Suarte said the residential component was lowered "from 52 units to 37 units" and that the design introduces terraces and private outdoor access for certain units plus a common deck. The team described a modified circulation plan featuring a 24-foot-wide pass-through and a relocated hotel drop-off designed to reduce neighborhood cut-through; the proposal includes an underground parking component so that the applicant can provide 140 spaces in total (70 below grade, 70 above). The applicant additionally described a 14-by-35-foot loading bay and noted structural-column dimensions under review (12" x 24").

On community benefits, the applicant said the hotel operator would make meeting rooms available to Park Ridge 501(c)(3) organizations and that they would place $250,000 in escrow to be directed by the city. The applicant emphasized that the Uptown Master Plan supports locating a hotel in the broader study area and contended the package of benefits and circulation improvements improved the block's long-term viability. Commissioners and some residents remained concerned about bulk, parking spillover and unresolved engineering issues (stormwater, sewer), which staff advised would be reviewed during final engineering and permitting.