Condominium Association of Commonwealth Plaza v. City of Chicago

CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMarch 5, 2010
Docket1-08-2318, 1-09-0306 Cons. Rel
StatusPublished

This text of Condominium Association of Commonwealth Plaza v. City of Chicago (Condominium Association of Commonwealth Plaza v. City of Chicago) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Condominium Association of Commonwealth Plaza v. City of Chicago, (Ill. Ct. App. 2010).

Opinion

SIXTH DIVISION March 5, 2010

Nos. 08-2318 & 09-0306 cons.

CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION OF ) COMMONWEALTH PLAZA, an Illinois Not- ) For-Profit Corporation; SUHAIL AL CHALABI; ) Appeal from the VIRGINIA M. HARDING; and DARREN MOSS, ) Circuit Court of ) Cook County, Illinois. Plaintiffs-Appellants, ) v. ) ) THE CITY OF CHICAGO, a Municipal ) No. 06 CH 22757 Corporation; THE CHICAGO PLAN ) COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF CHICAGO; ) LORI T. HEALEY, Commissioner, Department ) of Planning and Development; RESURRECTION ) HEALTH CARE, an Illinois Not-For-Profit ) Honorable Corporation; and SAINT JOSEPH HOSPITAL, ) Sophia Hall, an Illinois Not-For-Profit Corporation; ) Judge Presiding. ) Defendants-Appellees. ) _____________________________________________________________________________

CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION OF ) COMMONWEALTH PLAZA, an Illinois Not- ) For-Profit Corporation; SUHAIL AL CHALABI; ) VIRGINIA M. HARDING; and DARREN MOSS, ) ) Appeal from the Plaintiffs-Appellants, ) Circuit Court of v. ) Cook County, Illinois. ) THE CHICAGO PLAN COMMISSION OF THE ) CITY OF CHICAGO, LINDA SEARL, Vice ) Chairman and Acting Chairman; LORI T. ) No. 06 CH 12361 HEALEY, Secretary, and Commissioner of the ) Department of Planning and Development; ) ALDERMAN WILLIAM J.P. BANKS, ) ALDERMAN EDWARD M. BURKE, ALLISON ) Honorable S. DAVIS, MAYOR RICHARD M. DALEY, ) Sophia Hall, LEON D. FINNEY, JR., DORIS B. HOLLEB, ) Judge Presiding. CAROLE BROWN, AMRISH K. MAHAJAN, ) GEORGE W. MIGALA, ALDERMAN BURTON ) Nos. 08-2318 & 09-0306 cons. F. NATARUS, JOHN H. NELSON, NANCY ) A. PACHER, ALDERMAN MARY ANN ) SMITH, ALDERMAN BERNARD L. STONE, ) ALDERMAN REGNER “RAY” SUAREZ, ) members of the Commission; RESURRECTION ) HEALTH CARE, an Illinois Not-For-Profit ) Corporation; SAINT JOSEPH HOSPITAL, an ) Illinois Not-For-Profit Corporation; ) ) Defendants-Appellees. )

JUSTICE JOSEPH GORDON delivered the opinion of the court:

This case consists of the consolidation of two appeals from actions brought by the

Condominium Association of Commonwealth Plaza (Commonwealth Plaza), Suhail al Chalabi,

Virginia M. Harding, and Darren Moss, both alleging improper land usage by Resurrection Health

Care (Resurrection) and St. Joseph Hospital (St. Joseph) (collectively, the hospital defendants) in

connection with the St. Joseph campus, which is located within 250 feet of plaintiffs’ property.

In the first action (docket No. 06 CH 22757), plaintiffs challenged the validity of a zoning

amendment passed by the City of Chicago in favor of the hospital defendants. On July 28, 2006,

the Chicago city council passed an ordinance changing the zoning classification of certain land

around the St. Joseph campus to allow Resurrection to conduct further development of the

campus, including the construction of a medical office building, pursuant to an Institutional

Planned Development (IPD). Plaintiffs brought suit against the hospital defendants as well as

against the city of Chicago, the Chicago Plan Commission (Plan Commission), and Commissioner

Lori T. Healey (collectively, the city defendants), seeking a judicial declaration that the IPD

ordinance was invalid. Plaintiffs contended that the IPD ordinance was in violation of the

-2- Nos. 08-2318 & 09-0306 cons.

Chicago zoning ordinance, in that the proposed office building exceeded the floor plan density

limitations of the preexisting zoning classification, the building was not a permitted use of the

property, and the IPD ordinance failed to require that construction begin within a certain

timeframe to prevent lapse of the rezoning. They also contended that they were denied

procedural and substantive due process in connection with the Plan Commission’s hearing on the

ordinance. The trial court granted summary judgment for defendants on plaintiffs’ first

contention, finding that lack of conformity with Chicago zoning ordinances would not justify

invalidation of the IPD. The court additionally found that there was no just reason to delay

enforcement or appeal of its order under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 304(a) (210 Ill. 2d R.

304(a)).

In the second action (docket No. 06 CH 12361), plaintiffs sought administrative review of

a resolution adopted by the Plan Commission approving an application made by Resurrection

under the Lake Michigan and Chicago Lakefront Protection Ordinance (Chicago Municipal Code

§16–4 et seq. (eff. October 24, 1973)) (Lakefront Protection Ordinance) to obtain permission for

its planned developments on the St. Joseph campus. Plaintiffs further contended that

Resurrection was operating a parking lot in violation of a 1982 special use permit which required

that the parking lot be closed and locked after 8 p.m. The trial court dismissed the count

concerning the operation of the parking lot and certified it for appeal as well.

Plaintiffs appeal from both of these orders, and their appeals have been consolidated. For

the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

I. BACKGROUND

-3- Nos. 08-2318 & 09-0306 cons.

A. 06 CH 22757

Plaintiffs’ complaint in the first of the two consolidated cases now before us, which they

filed on October 24, 2006, alleged the following facts that are not in dispute. On March 12,

2004, Resurrection filed an application with the city of Chicago, requesting that the city council

change the zoning classification of certain specified land around the St. Joseph campus in order to

allow for implementation of an IPD on the property. Additionally, on February 18, 2004,

Resurrection applied to the Plan Commission for approval of its development plans under the

Lakefront Protection Ordinance (Chicago Municipal Code §16–4 et seq. (eff. October 24, 1973)),

which provides that any physical change made to property in Chicago’s lakefront district must

first be approved by the Plan Commission. In its proposal, Resurrection lists “long-term master

campus planning” as well as a number of short-term projects, including multiple building

additions, interior renovations, and 1 1/2 additional floors of parking structure. On May 19,

2006, the Plan Commission held a public hearing on these two applications. The Plan

Commission then granted approval to Resurrection’s plans under the Lakefront Protection

Ordinance and issued a recommendation to the city council committee on zoning that

Resurrection’s rezoning application be granted. Subsequently, the city council of Chicago voted

to enact an ordinance that changed the zoning classification of the subject property in accordance

with Resurrection’s request and approved the requested IPD.

Plaintiff al Chalabi is the vice president of Commonwealth Plaza, which owns property

within 250 feet of the rezoned property, and plaintiffs Harding and Moss are owners of separate

properties at that same address. Together with Commonwealth Plaza itself, they brought suit

-4- Nos. 08-2318 & 09-0306 cons.

under section 11-13-25 of the Illinois Municipal Code (65 ILCS 5/11-13-25 (West 2006)),

seeking a judicial declaration that the IPD ordinance passed by the city council was void for two

reasons. First, under the heading “The Challenged IPD Ordinances are Void as Arbitrary,

Capricious, and Unreasonable,” they contended that the ordinance was invalid because it did not

comply with existing zoning ordinances. Specifically, they alleged that the ordinance did not

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