2 Highwood zoning commissioners resign after City Council green-lights concert hall

Two members of the Highwood Planning and Zoning Commission have resigned as a result of Highwood City Council’s decision on July 15 to allow a local music school to move forward with constructing a new 728-seat concert hall near the Fort Sheridan community.

The council’s decision, via a 4-2 vote, overpassed the zoning commission’s recommendation to deny the proposal.

A day later, July 16, Commissioners Pete Biagi and Joel Gettleman separately emailed Highwood City Manager Scott Coren to give notice of their resignation from the Planning and Zoning Commission, letters obtained by The Record through a Freedom of Information Act request show. 

Biagi and Gettleman were in the majority of Highwood commissioners that voted 8-1 on June 18 to recommend denial to the Midwest Young Artist Conservatory’s petition to rezone a four-acre plot of vacant land adjacent to their headquarters in Fort Sheridan to build a new concert hall.

But Highwood City Council’s vote on July 15 to rezone the land from residential to commercial, opposing the view of the commission and plenty of residents.

“We had some debate but this was not even a close decision for us,” Gettleman wrote to Coren and Highwood City Council members. “I heard the council vote was 4-2 in favor of changing the zoning. I’m pretty sure the only votes against were from people who attended the public hearings.”

Gettleman, in his letter of resignation, implied a decision on the plans may have been assured prior to the council’s meeting.

“I would certainly hope that this was not a preordained outcome but it sure has the air of it,” Gettleman continued. “For the reason that it has this appearance, I am resigning from the zoning committee.”

Highwood City Council’s decision in favor of MYAC capped a contentious five-hour session in which 57 different members of the public addressed the council; forty-eight individuals expressed opposition and argued that MYAC’s leadership failed to address a host of concerns about the development. 

The commission’s preceding vote against MYAC came after more than eight-hours-worth of public input from community members, which included project supporters who argued that MYAC’s 900 enrollees need a space of their own to practice and perform.

Highwood City Councilmember George Markoutsas — who voted in support of MYAC alongside M. Brad Slavin, Krista Hanson and Mike Fiore — said in an email that the vote “was not an easy decision,” but a thoughtful one that supports a “broader cultural and economic future for Highwood.”

“While I was sorry to learn of the commissioners’ resignations, I respect their service and their right to step down if they felt the process no longer aligned with their views,” Markoutsas wrote. 

“That said, I want to be clear: My decision to vote in favor of the rezoning was not preordained,” Markoutsas continued. “It was the result of weeks of active listening, public input, review of professional studies, and alignment with the City of Highwood’s 2013 Comprehensive Plan, which clearly designated this area for potential civic and cultural use.”

Having served on the city Planning and Zoning Commission for over seven years, Biagi, a former mechanical engineer, told The Record that he hadn’t planned on remaining on the commission much longer regardless of the council’s vote.

But echoing Gettleman, Biagi said he decided to resign from the commission as a result of the city’s decision.

“I was very disappointed that the City Council voted the way they did after hearing from so many of the citizens of Highwood,” Biagi said. 

“It was overwhelmingly,” he added. “The voices of the citizens did not want this music venue and so it was very disappointing to hear that (Highwood voted in favor of MYAC). It was surprising.” 

Biagi and Gettleman were both appointed to the commissions by Mayor Charlie Pecaro. Gettleman, who works in construction, was appointed to a four-year term on the commission in July 2022. With their two resignations, the commission now boasts seven members.

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