Pulte Homes, one of the country’s largest homebuilders, is seeking Orland Park’s approval for a 132-home housing development southwest of La Grange Road and 159th Street.
Called Estates at Ravinia Meadows, the development would offer seven home designs, with floor plans ranging from 2,600 square feet to just under 3,400 square feet.
Pending village approval, Pulte hopes to start work this summer.
The property is a bit more than 72 acres, but homes will be built on 56 acres, with the remaining acreage left as open space or stormwater detention, according to plans.
To the east of the proposed development are the Mistee Ridge and Hummingbird Hill subdivisions, and to the west is Good Shepherd Cemetery. Orland Hills borders the site to the south.
Some residents told the village Plan Commission Tuesday they were concerned about traffic and stormwater drainage.
It’s envisioned that access to Estates at Ravinia Meadows from the north would come from Ravinia Avenue, which ends south of the Costco property. The village’s long-range plan is to extend Ravinia south to 161st Street.
Access to the development from the south would come off of 165th Street.
Village officials said they will examine an existing stormwater detention pond Costco maintains after property owners told the Plan Commission that it’s not functioning as it should.
The Hilltop home style Pulte Homes plans to offer at Estates of Ravinia Meadows, a 132-home development proposed in Orland Park. (Village of Orland Park)
The pond is to the north of where Pulte plans to build, and is designed to handle runoff from about 20 acres of the housing development, according to Pulte.
The remaining 50 acres would drain toward a detention pond Pulte plans at the south end of the site.
Fabian Fondriest, land acquisition manager for Pulte, told Plan Commission members the company is the nation’s third-largest homebuilder, with operations in 25 states.
Locally, it is developing Gleneagles, a mix of housing at the former country club in Lemont. In Orland Park, in conjunction with owners of Palos Country Club, it built the Southmoor gated community, which includes duplexes and detached single-family homes.
The Estates project would be all detached single-family homes, and Pulte would include a playground that would eventually be turned over to the village, Fondriest said.
Pulte would also build homes around different pockets of trees on the land, preserving as many as possible, he said.
Within the subdivision and around the detention pond at the south end, Pulte plans more than one mile of multi-use paths. They would be maintained by a homeowners’ association but available for use to all Orland Park residents, he said.
Plans for the street layout were altered to avoid straight north-south streets, with curved streets through much of the subdivision meant to slow traffic and act as a deterrent to people using the subdivision to cut through and avoid La Grange Road, according to the village.
Focus was directed at the detention pond north of the site, maintained by Costco.
Sharon Barta said her father owns 10 acres directly northeast of where Pulte plans to build, and that “every time something gets built around us the water gets dumped on our land.”
She contends the Costco pond backs up during storms, with water running through a culvert under Ravinia Avenue and onto her family’s property, which they have owned for more than 50 years.
“I’m not against developing housing but against dumping water on other people’s property,” Barta said. “For 50 years water has been dumping on our land.”
An engineer working for Pulte said a development agreement from several years ago allows the Costco pond to be used to handle stormwater runoff from a portion of the land Pulte wants to build on.
He told the Plan Commission that while the land Pulte wants to build on is now vacant, the pond was designed to take water from development that would include nonpermeable surfaces, such as streets.
Planners said they want village staff, including village engineers, to take a closer look at the condition of the Costco pond before Pulte begins building.
Rezoning for a 229-lot, 80-acre subdivision is heading to the Portage City Council for approval after months of revisions to the plan.
Lennar Homes of Indiana is planning to build Swanson Trails at the northwest corner of County Road 700 North and Swanson Road.
The home prices will start at $350,000 to $420,000, depending on size and furnishings.
Todd Kleven, vice president of land acquisition for Lennar, told the Plan Commission Tuesday that plans call for Swanson Trails to have its own park. A fitness court is planned as a result of excitement about the city’s first one at the corner of Airport and Lute roads.
The Plan Commission gave the development a favorable recommendation. The council meets Tuesday night.
Swanson Trails would be developed as a planned unit development, meaning the zoning would be customized for that subdivision only.
Attorney Todd Leeth, representing Lennar Homes of Indiana, walked the commission through the current plan.
“We’re not presenting anything but 229 single lots for single-family homes,” he said. “Those homes are much narrower than your ordinance allows.”
Instead of lots 80 feet wide, Lennar is proposing lots 50 and 63 feet wide.
“Lennar is one of the largest home builders in the nation. They know what they’re doing. They know what their customers want, and their customers want lower-maintenance homes. They don’t want 1/3 of an acre, 1/4 of an acre; they want smaller homes,” Leeth said.
“But they want the amenities. They want that park. They want those open spaces. They want those walking trails. Those are the things that buyers, according to Lennar want,” he said.
“Everybody’s going to see the same thing that they would see elsewhere except it’s going to be much greener because of the tree preservation,” Leeth said. “What you’re seeing in this ordinance, in that concept plan, it didn’t start that way. We’ve had now six previous iterations, so we’ve been working with staff. The first one was in March, then we went a long way, but it was August, September, October, November, December. Every month, it changed because staff wanted something different.”
The last change came after a Dec. 2 meeting, to preserve more trees, he said.
Mayor Austin Bonta spoke in favor of the plan.
At the Plan Commission’s December meeting, about 30 people showed up for a public hearing but it was postponed because Lennar was revising the plan again. Bonta invited those residents to meet with him to hear their concerns. Leeth also showed up.
“There were three essentially different types of people present at the meeting upstairs in my office,” Bonta said. “One was a group of people who don’t want any homes built on this land. Then there were people who were OK with homes being built on this land, but they wanted to make sure that they were of the same value, quality as the homes in their neighborhood across the street in Arvilla Acres or in Brookview. And then the third group of people were people who were concerned about the trees and the woods.”
“We know the market in Northwest Indiana. Someone is going to buy this land, and it’s going to be someone who will have the ability to say, I’m going to build an R2 neighborhood to what the code allows me to build, and there’s really nothing we can do to stop it,” Bonta said.
Lennar saved most of the trees and is planning a trail system to enjoy them. It’s building quality homes, too, he said.
“When I came in as mayor, I think it was very known that I came in very critical of residential growth and with the determination to not just say yes to everything,” Bonta said. “We’ve had some developers who I told them point blank what we expect to see in Portage, and some of them just walk away. When a developer doesn’t walk away and they work with the city, I think it’s worth noting.”
When the subdivision is fully built out, which Kleven expects to happen in about four years, the homes would generate about $1 million in additional property taxes, he said.
Doug Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
It’s almost time for the Chicago Sky to be back on the clock for improving their roster.
The Sky will enter the first stage of free agency Saturday — a nine-day window of extending qualifying offers to restricted free agents — that will set the tone for the rest of their offseason roster construction. And with plenty of cap space and a pair of first-round picks in his pocket
, Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca is well-positioned to maneuver in his second free-agency window with the franchise.
So who should be atop the Sky’s free-agent wish list?
The process will be heavily dictated by the Sky’s expectations for 2025. This will not be a championship season. The Sky need to approach it with specific goals: Draft well, develop talent, make the playoffs and — most importantly — transform Chicago into a free-agency destination.
That last step is crucial to accomplish ahead of next offseason, when a new CBA
is expected to radically disrupt player movement across the league. And all of this means the Sky can move with plenty of flexibility right now, particularly in offering one-year deals to players who want to test out a new market before cashing in on the predicted increase salaries in 2026.
The Sky ideally need two additions to their frontcourt, both of whom would need to be comfortable coming off the bench behind Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. This disqualifies them from a few key free-agency battles this season, including the race to land Satou Sabally.
The focus, however, is the backcourt. The Sky desperately need to create an identity for their guard play under new coach Tyler Marsh
. Their inability to consistently move the ball or shoot from 3-point range last season created one of the most stagnant offenses in the league, which ultimately stunted the growth of both rookies
. While it’s easy to overemphasize the importance of a “true point guard,” the Sky need to upgrade their primary (and maybe even secondary) ball handler to look more cohesive.
There are a few big-name guards — namely Kelsey Plum, whom Marsh coached in Las Vegas — whose decisions will command attention over the next few months. But the Sky might be just as well served working in the margins to create consistency on their bench and in the backcourt.
Here are six players the Sky should begin making pitches to on Jan. 21 before they officially can begin signing on Feb. 1.
Chennedy Carter
Sky guard Chennedy Carter (7) tries to make a pass against Wings guard Jacy Sheldon on June 20, 2024, at Wintrust Arena. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
The Sky’s first priority is negotiating with restricted free agents — and Carter will be at the top of the team’s list
. The guard provided a rare bright spot for the Sky last season, leading the team with 17.5 points per game after winning a starting role, but her future with the organization is still uncertain.
Carter’s offensive fit with the Sky is something of a conundrum. She’s clearly a talented shooter, but her heavy emphasis on 2-pointers means she requires a higher usage rate than other comparable guards while failing to provide the kick-out spacing required for a team built around its frontcourt.
If the Sky are going to make Carter work in Chicago, it will require both her willingness and ability to take fewer shots and increase her efficiency, particularly from behind the arc. Her offseason has not entirely reflected those goals — Carter is averaging an impressive 30.7 points in the Women’s Chinese Basketball Association, but she’s taking at least four more shots per game than her WNBA averages while still shooting only 25% from 3-point range.
This will be a hard decision for the Sky, who don’t necessarily want to let the guard walk after such a successful season — but can’t risk another season of lopsided offense.
Michaela Onyenwere
Chicago Sky forward Michaela Onyenwere (12) celebrates after scoring against the Fever on Aug. 30, 2024, at Wintrust Arena. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
A more cut-and-dry restricted free-agency option is Onyenwere, who stepped into a starting role at the end of last season. Onyenwere is a crucial veteran leader in the locker room for the Sky and offered a lift as a versatile wing who could shoot from long range. Despite technically being unsigned, she spent the early weeks of the offseason participating in team events, which included the introduction of Marsh and the ribbon cutting of the new training facility
.
While Onyenwere is expected to return to the Sky, her role is less clear. If the Sky add a few wings through the draft or elsewhere, Onyenwere could move back to the bench and anchor the secondary unit with fellow veteran Elizabeth Williams.
Kelsey Mitchell
Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune
Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell drives for a layup against Sky forward Azurá Stevens on May 24, 2022, at Wintrust Arena. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
The biggest challenge of Mitchell’s free agency will be prying her from the Indiana Fever. While Mitchell said she’s weighing her options heading into 2025, the guard is sitting in a golden situation with a high-caliber coach and a surefire star — Caitlin Clark — in Indiana.
The pros for the Sky are obvious: Mitchell shot 40.2% from 3-point range and averaged a career-high 19.2 points last season, showcasing her ability to space the floor with a strong guard unit and feed an elite post around the rim. But they’ll need to do some pretty tough negotiating to convince Mitchell that she would be in a better spot with the young future in Chicago rather than Indiana.
Natisha Hiedeman
Lynx guard Natisha Hiedeman advances the ball up the court against the Wings on June 27, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (Tony Gutierrez/AP)
If the Sky are solely looking for facilitation, they should turn their attention north for unrestricted free agent Hiedeman. A six-year veteran, Hiedeman took a reserved role off the bench for the Minnesota Lynx last season. The Sky could offer her a starting gig with the potential to build toward a championship-contending team.
Beyond her ball movement and strength as a defender, Hiedeman generates the bulk of her offense from behind the arc. She is a career 37.7% 3-point shooter — although that dipped to 28% last season — which could bolster an area the Sky sorely need to shore up. Despite her long-range accuracy, Hiedeman is not a high-volume scorer. But if the Sky can create an engine for their offense through the frontcourt and other shooting guards, then a pass-first facilitator like Hiedeman would make sense in a transition season.
Courtney Vandersloot
The Liberty’s Courtney Vandersloot (22) drives past the Sky’s Elizabeth Williams on May 23, 2024, in New York. (Frank Franklin II/AP)
Y’all ready for some nostalgia? Vandersloot, a two-time WNBA champion and five-time All-Star, is back on the free-agent market and made it clear this week that she’s open to options outside of the New York Liberty. While Vandersloot is past her prime, she’s still one of the best passers in the game — and could offer a short-term solution for the Sky’s backcourt in an important growth year for the franchise.
To make this deal, the Sky would need to feel Vandersloot’s ball facilitation and veteran leadership outweigh her lack of scoring (6.4 points per game with the Liberty last season) and diminished defense. And Vandersloot would have to be willing to return to Chicago — she played the first 12 seasons of her career with the Sky from 2011-22 — in a different role, which could mean some combination of coming off the bench and/or not closing games.
Sami Whitcomb
The Storm’s Sami Whitcomb (32) drives to the basket against the Fever’s Caitlin Clark on Aug. 18, 2024, in Indianapolis. (Darron Cummings/AP)
If the Sky want to take a flyer on a high-volume shooter, Whitcomb could be a perfect option. The Australian guard was one of the most consistent 3-point shooters in the WNBA throughout her first seven seasons, averaging 37.2% shooting on 4.5 attempts in that span.
Whitcomb struggled from 3-point range last season — shooting only 29.2% — as her role fluctuated rapidly from a starter to DNP from week to week. Given her history, it would be unsurprising to see her snap back to her previous consistency as a shooter. And as they look to build around youth, the Sky could benefit from another solid veteran presence on the bench.
A Hammond man faces 25 years for killing a 15-year-old selling marijuana in a botched $140 drug deal.
Christopher Wells, 22, admitted Wednesday in a plea deal to voluntary manslaughter, a Level 2 felony. It was done under sudden heat, according to court documents.
His sentencing hearing is Feb. 5 before Judge Natalie Bokota.
Police were called around 8 p.m. March 11, 2021 to the 2800 block of 164th Street after reports of a shooting, documents state.
Wells said he went there with a friend to buy marijuana and THC cartridges from Castillo, a “kid” whom he bought drugs from before, records allege.
In a phone call with detectives, Wells claimed self-defense, saying the victim — Jesus Castillo, of the city’s Hessville section — tried to rob him as Wells was buying drugs from him, court records allege.
Castillo’s body was found five blocks north in the parked red Ford Explorer Wells drove, court records state. The boy had been shot a dozen times, with seven bullet fragments later pulled out, according to a coroner.
The U.S. Justice Department is suing several large landlords, including a Chicago-based firm, for allegedly coordinating to keep Americans’ rents high by using both an algorithm to help set rents and privately sharing sensitive information with their competitors to boost profits.
The lawsuit arrives as U.S. renters continue to struggle under a merciless housing market, with incomes failing to keep up with rent increases. The latest figures show that half of American renters spent more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities in 2022, an all-time high.
That means eviction notices and protracted court cases in which children face the highest eviction rates, with 1.5 million evicted each year, according to Princeton University’s Eviction Lab.
While the housing crisis has been attributed to several causes, including a slump in homes built over the last decade, the Justice Department’s lawsuit claims major landlords are playing a part.
The department, along with 10 states including Illinois, North Carolina, Tennessee, Colorado and California, is accusing six landlords that collectively operate more than 1.3 million units in 43 states and the District of Columbia of scheming to avoid lowering rents.
“Access to affordable housing is a basic human right. It is unacceptable that the people of Illinois should have to pay higher rental rates because a scheme to utilize new technology and break a long-standing law has stacked the odds against them,” said Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. “My office will continue to enforce the antitrust laws to protect competition that will give Illinois renters housing options that best meet their needs.”
Chicago-based Cushman & Wakefield, one of the landlords named in the suit, said in a statement to the Tribune that its property management company, Pinnacle Property Management Services, also named in the suit, does not set pricing.
“We believe that revenue management software can help property owners efficiently manage rents and help prevent discrimination and bias in decision-making, but ultimately, Pinnacle is solely a property manager and does not own any properties or set strategy, pricing, or occupancy targets. We also do not decide whether the properties managed by Pinnacle use revenue management services and software, which software provider to use, if any, and whether to accept recommendations provided by such software.”
Landlord Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC, also a defendant in the case, declined a request for comment from The Associated Press, but published an unsigned statement on its website.
“Greystar has and will conduct its business with the utmost integrity. At no time did Greystar engage in any anti-competitive practices,” the statement read. “We will vigorously defend ourselves in this lawsuit.”
The lawsuit accuses the landlords of sharing sensitive data on rents and occupancy with competing firms via email, phone calls or in groups. The information shared allegedly included renewal rates, how often they accept an algorithm’s price recommendation, the use of concessions such as offering one month free, and even their approach to pricing for the next quarter.
The Justice Department said one of the six landlords agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. The proposed settlement would restrict how the company can use their competitors’ data and algorithms to set rents.
“Today’s action against RealPage and six major landlords seeks to end their practice of putting profits over people and make housing more affordable for millions of people across the country,” said Doha Mekki, the acting assistant attorney general for the department’s antitrust division in Tuesday’s press release.
Those landlords were added to an existing lawsuit against RealPage, which runs an algorithm that recommends rental prices to landlords. Prosecutors say the algorithm uses sensitive competitive information, allowing landlords to align their prices and avoid competition that would otherwise push down rents.
Jennifer Bowcock, RealPage’s senior vice president for communications, said in a statement to the AP that their software is used on fewer than 10% of rental units in the U.S., and that their price recommendations are used less than half the time.
“It’s past time to stop scapegoating RealPage — and now our customers — for housing affordability problems when the root cause of high housing costs is the under-supply of housing,” Bowcock said.
