NVA eyes truck terminal expansion, despite Crystal Lake rejection earlier this year

A truck terminal expansion could still be happening in Crystal Lake, despite the City Council denying an earlier rezoning request made by NVA Transportation.

The City Council unanimously denied NVA Transportation’s preliminary plans for an expanded truck terminal in February. However, NVA Transportation is currently pursuing building permits and another planned-unit development that works within its current zoning, according to emails from city staff obtained by the Northwest Herald. That means the transportation company wouldn’t need City Council approval to expand.

NVA Transportation, at 7013 Sands Road, is now looking to create 284 parking spaces for trucks and cars adjacent to a new building with an increased distance of 200 feet from the residential area to the north, instead of the original 125 feet. Those numbers could change as NVA goes through the permitting process with the city to lock down a final plan, NVA attorney Mark Daniel said.

NVA originally requested the construction of a 36,200-square-foot freight terminal with 324 truck parking spaces on its 22-acre property. The proposal for the structure included seven service bays, indoor loading docks and areas for storage, offices and a warehouse. Rezoning was required for the plan because it involved a larger portion of undeveloped property and NVA characterized their uses as a “logistics operation,” according to city documents.

But in a July 12 letter to Daniel, Crystal Lake Community Development Director Kathryn Cowlin wrote: “City staff has determined that the proposal can be properly characterized as having a principal use of ‘warehousing distribution,’” which she wrote is a permitted use in a manufacturing district in the city.

In order to have a plan that won’t require NVA to go back for city council approval, Cowlin wrote, the company will need to comply with a number of requirements: There can be no sleeping accommodations; drivers will not be allowed to sleep in trucks; trucks stored within 300 feet of residences to the north cannot idle from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. or for more than 30 minutes at any time of day, depending on weather; property access will be restricted with a gate; and the proposal needs to be designed, developed and operated in accordance with the city’s codes.

Nearby resident Kevin McVearry spoke during a city council meeting Tuesday, saying truck traffic mixed with school buses going into the neighboring residential areas is a dangerous mix.

“It’s ridiculous to me that I have to keep coming back here and begging you. It’s a public safety issue,” he said. “It is unacceptable that city staff is going to go around this council and the planning commission and approve this project.”

Resident Russ Jorgensen expressed concerns that NVA can still go through with more truck parking despite the city council unanimously denying the plan.

“What happened to the process? To me, it’s still a safety issue,” he said.

The building permitting process does not require public notification or the need for council approval, City Manager Eric Helm said. Mayor Haig Haleblian said deals aren’t going under the table and the city hasn’t seen any official plans yet.

“The property owner has the right to make this work,” he said. “Nobody is going around anybody.”

City Council members made it clear in February that they were only denying the rezoning and said they support NVA Transportation continuing its business in Crystal Lake.

Major concerns of nearby residents include increased traffic, effects on well water, potential flooding and noise and light pollution. Residents organized against the expansion, creating the website SaveSandsRoad.com and an online petition that has more than 1,900 signatures.