City of McHenry

2050 Comprehensive Plan & Downtown Plan

The City of McHenry is working on a comprehensive plan that will result in a citywide vision and strategy that will guide development and growth in the city of McHenry.

Over the last eight months, the City has been meeting with the community to build a set of recommendations, goals, and strategies to guide planning and investment in McHenry for the next 25+ years.

McHenry 2050 will focus on 3 priorities:

• Community Development
• Infrastructure Development
• Economic Development

In this survey the City wants to hear your thoughts about a series of draft strategies. City Council will use the results from this survey to choose strategies for the comprehensive plan, which will then guide Council’s decisions on future development applications and infrastructure investments.

Strategy 1: Develop a citywide land development framework

The citywide framework defines six character areas to provide guidance for the type of development that is appropriate in different areas of McHenry. This framework recommends that areas such as Downtown remain walkable and vibrant and more rural areas preserve their low-density development patterns and natural heritage. It also promotes development patterns that maximize the use of existing infrastructure and land before expanding infrastructure to underdeveloped areas.

Strategy 2: Maintain small-town character in new neighborhoods

As new greenfield neighborhoods and housing are built, the scale and character of the streets, lots, and buildings should match the scale and character recommended in the character area framework and map in Strategy 1 and described more fully in this strategy #2. This strategy will maintain McHenry as a place that is unique and encourage more fiscally-sustainable development and better utilization of resources.

Strategy 3: Increase the diversity of McHenry's housing stock to ensure availability of a variety of housing types and affordability levels

The diversity of housing stock in a city is characterized by the presence of residential units of different sizes, configurations, tenures, and price points located in buildings of different sizes, ages, and ownership structures. Providing a range of housing types accommodates varying lifestyle choices and affordability needs and makes it possible for households of different sizes and income levels to live in close proximity to one another.

Strategy 4: Prioritize the protection, restoration, and expansion of ecologically sensitive natural areas, agricultural lands, and other natural open spaces

The City of McHenry is a special combination of small town, natural areas, rural character, agricultural fields, and farmsteads. The natural systems in and around the city are a richly diversified mix of woodlands, prairies, and wetlands. While non-profits like the Land Conservancy of McHenry County protect these natural systems by accepting donated conservation easements and by direct acquisition of property, the city of McHenry has access to other strategies that can result in protection, restoration, and expansion of ecologically sensitive natural areas, agricultural lands, and other natural open spaces within the city’s jurisdiction.

Strategy 5: Redevelop large vacant shopping centers to accommodate housing with the retail/commercial uses. Include walkable streets, mixed-use buildings, and high-quality public spaces

McHenry, like the rest of the nation, has seen a high vacancy rate in the once thriving shopping centers along major auto-oriented corridors. Currently, the city has multiple sites that were once vibrant big box retail stores and are now siting vacant or being converted to storage facilities. This strategy recommends reimagining these vacant shopping centers by turning them into active mixed-use nodes by adding different types of housing, public open spaces, and an appropriate mix of retail and commercial services. Redeveloping these sites as recommended will provide housing that can support scaled back retail and bring a vibrant neighborhood feel to currently barren sites.

Strategy 6: Actively recruit businesses that provide entertainment and activities for younger residents (ages 12 to 20 years)

Currently there is a lack of entertainment and activities in McHenry for the youth (12 to 20 years) in McHenry. Most of the businesses provide entertainment/activities with adults in mind but offer little for young people. With nothing to do after school, there is a general feeling of dissatisfaction and a desire to leave McHenry as they seek out activities in neighboring communities. Recruiting businesses that provide opportunities for entertainment/activities/and public places for young people to hang out with friends after school would keep young people occupied and out of trouble and will make McHenry an attractive place for the young people.

Strategy 7: Develop a Citywide Mobility Framework to promote safe and healthy streets by right-sizing roadway designs and by separating vehicles from people walking along the roadways

The mobility framework would identify key corridors such as Riverside Drive, Crystal Lake Road, Curran Road, Ringwood Road, Bull Valley Road/Miller Road, McCullom Lake Road, Main Street, Green Street, IL 120 west of Downtown, etc., that represent the primary connections between various commercial and residential areas within the city. This framework will ensure that all roadways in the city are designed appropriate to the character of the nearby area and are built to accommodate all users.

Strategy 8: Develop additional trail connections and riverwalk segments to create a continuous trail network throughout the whole city of McHenry

As the population grows, the parks and trail systems should grow proportionately to ensure that the level of service for existing residents remains consistent. As new development occurs care should be taken to ensure adequate accessibility to parks. The City’s trail system should be expanded along the riverwalk as shown in the 2003 Downtown Plan. Recommendations from the 2012 McHenry County Infrastructure Plan also provide guidance on building green infrastructure concepts (such as greenways, trails, conservation design, and green building practices) in land use decisions and new development.

Strategy 9: Prioritize shared use and multi-benefit nature-based infrastructure including best management practices such as bioswales, bioretention, enhanced Swales, and enhanced stormwater detention and retention

A nature-based infrastructure approach can be used to manage the quantity and quality of stormwater runoff, often including prevention and source control practices. Best management practices (BMPs) include a variety of ways to slow down stormwater runoff such as those listed above, as well as rain gardens, permeable pavement, bioswales in roadway medians or parking lot landscaping, detention ponds, stormwater wetlands, etc. BMP design depends on many considerations, such as available space, physical conditions at a site, and regulatory requirements.

Strategy 10: Prioritize upgrading existing water, wastewater, and roadway infrastructure over service extension and expansion to undeveloped areas, to prevent development sprawl and to preserve agricultural land and natural open space

In order to be fiscally sustainable, the city needs to be able to adequately maintain existing infrastructure prior to building more. This strategy will encourage and support more infill development and maintain a more consistent overall tax burden for current taxpayers. While it’s recommended that the majority of future growth be accommodated in the city’s existing infrastructure footprint and service area, there will still be some new development in greenfield areas. Therefore, it will be important to ensure that adequate fees are collected for City administration and maintenance of any new infrastructure.

Strategy 11: Support development around the Metra station to increase ridership and train frequency

Concentrating development around the Metra Station would promote transit ridership, which in turn would encourage Metra to increase train frequency and upgrade McHenry’s Metra Station. Such development within ½ mile of a transit stop that is designed to bring people, activities, buildings, and public space together, with easy walking and cycling connection between them and transit service is called a Transit Oriented Development (TOD).

Strategy 12: Prioritize catalyst developments at strategic points to encourage developers and property owners to invest in downtown McHenry

Currently, downtown McHenry is three separate areas – Green Street, Main Street, and the Riverwalk. It is important for McHenry to create a cohesive downtown experience to ensure that all three areas are economically viable.

Catalyst development sites should be at locations that are important destinations on their own but are supportive of each other. They should encourage similar infill developments so that the three areas of downtown can become one connected downtown.