Highland Park City Council voted unanimously on Thursday to approve plans to build 30 residential units in a long-vacant site near the city’s downtown area.

The project, from developer HP Laurel Park, features an 18-unit townhome complex and a four-story, 12-unit multi-family condo building on approximately two acres of land near the intersection of Laurel Road and McGovern Avenue. 

The multi-family building will include four three-bedroom condominiums set to the cost of the area’s median income in line with the city’s Inclusionary Housing Plan. The rest of the two- to four- bedroom residences reportedly will be priced at market rate, ranging in cost from $525,000 to $1.36 million. 

The new residential buildings will add onto an existing development of the property constructed after Highland Park City Council adopted an ordinance in March 2006 that granted a special use permit for the property near Laurel Road and McGovern Avenue.

But due to the “Great Recession, only 12 of the townhomes were completed, along the east and northeast parts of the site” and the development was not completed by the site’s previous owner, Laurel Park, a memo drafted by Highland Park city staff says. 

The original development plan also called for 7.2 affordable units that were never constructed. HP Laurel Park requested relief to only build 4.8 affordable units instead, and the Highland Park Housing Commission voted unanimously to grant that relief, city documents show. 

With Highland Park City Council’s approval, HP Laurel Park will develop the property for McGovern Properties and Laurel Avenue Properties, which together own 21 lots of land near the curved stretch of Laurel Avenue that connects to Hickory Street.

The development will also build 64 parking spaces for the buildings.

Before voting in favor of the plan on Thursday, Councilmember Annette Lidawer expressed concern that the blueprints show the four affordable units will have “significantly smaller” square footage compared to the market-rate units.

City documents show that the four affordable units range from 1,185 square feet to 1,450 square feet of space. 

Mark Kurensky, of HKM Architects and Planners, noted to the council that the developer had the option to design two-, three- and even four bedroom affordable units in the multifamily building, but the Highland Park Housing Commission affirmed it wanted three-bedroom units.

“We exceed the minimum square footage,” Kurensky said. “They are smaller than the others but the idea of inclusionary is to try to find that balance of getting the developers to build the inclusionary, have them with the similar materials.” 

“Your code doesn’t actually say they have to have the same materials inside,” Kurensky added. “We’re saying that we’re going to use the exact same material finishes and cabinets and all that inside.”

The Highland Park Plan and Design Commission voted unanimously on July 15 to recommend the development’s plans, and the Highland Park Housing Commission did the same on June 4. 

The Plan and Design Commission held five total public meetings on the project: on March 18, May 6, June 3, June 17 and July 15, respectively.

Councilmember Tony Blumberg was absent from Thursday’s meeting.

The specific plans the council approved on Thursday were to amend a special use permit, amend an inclusionary housing plan, approve a developer agreement and approve subdividing the property into 21 individual lots.

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A Highland Park police investigation into a report that a man attempted to lure a child into his truck this week determined the report was unfounded and the suspect did not actually attempt to lure the child.

A resident reported to the Highland Park Police Department around 7 p.m. on Wednesday that an elementary-school-age student said they were dropped off by a school bus near their residence around 2:45 p.m. when they were approached by a man in a white box truck, a city news release says.

The man reportedly pulled up close to the child near Ridge Road and Devonshire Court, rolled down his window and said “Hey kid, get in the car.” The student reportedly ran home and is safe. 

The suspect vehicle, described as a white box truck with noticeable rust near the windows, reportedly continued traveling south on Ridge Road. The suspect, the lone occupant of the truck, was reportedly described as a white man with a long black beard.

The original news release that the City of Highland Park distributed around 10:17 p.m. on Wednesday asked for anyone who may have witnessed the event or has security camera footage from the area to contact the Highland Park police.

Likewise, the original news release asked for local businesses who have contractors, delivery drivers or service workers operating a similar vehicle in the area to contact Highland Park police.

But an update distributed by the city around 5:35 p.m. on Thursday said police reviewed video footage, identified the truck and driver, and “determined that this was not an attempted luring incident.”

The vehicle was in the area at the time of the reported incident, but “video and audio from the vehicle’s cabin indicated that nothing was stated,” the city news release said. 

Electronic license plate readers and security video footage from the nearby Highland Park Police Station identified the suspect and the commercial vehicle he was in at the time of the reported incident, Amanda Bennet, the city communications manager said.

“The City takes every reported public safety concern seriously, and investigations into reported threats begin immediately,” the city news release said.

“The City shares information about active investigations as appropriate to help residents understand potential safety issues and make informed decisions for themselves and their families,” the release added. “Fortunately, the investigation determined there was no risk to the student in this case.”

The child was a Deerfield District 109 student, a Thursday news release sent out to the North Shore Education District 112 community from Superintendent Michael Lubelfeld said. 

The city of Highland Park encouraged families to talk with children about safety precautions they should take in similar circumstances, including to never approach or enter a vehicle without a parent or guardian’s permission. 

As most child abductions involve a relative or someone the child knows, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children recommends that parents teach kids to run away from and report behaviors and situations that make the child feel uncomfortable.

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The Highland Park Public Library announced this week it has received two major resident donations to support its ongoing renovation and expansion of the library building. 

The Alvin H. Baum Family Fund, named after a lifelong Highland Park resident, donated $250,000 to the Reimagine Your Library fundraising campaign, a news release from the public library says. Likewise, Rob and Terri Olian donated $100,000 to the capital campaign. 

Rob Olian is the president of the Library Board of Trustees, and Terri Olian is the executive director of the Highland Park Community Foundation and a former Highland Park City Council member.

“Our love for public libraries began when we were children and has continued to this day,” says a statement attributed to the Olians. “It’s been a joy for us to see how that love has been passed down to our children and now to our grandchildren.”

Construction broke ground in June for the more than 7,500-square-foot addition to the Highland Park Public Library. The project will add two new ADA-accessible restrooms, a three-floor elevator, a climate-controlled archives room, a creative studio and a 175-seat community room. 

The expansion to the west side of the building near the intersection of Laurel and St. Johns avenues will also include a youth department that will provide approximately 25% more book collection space and 50% more activity space to the library. 

The project is estimated to cost $10 million and finish in the late fall of 2026, Olian previously told The Record. The Highland Park Public Library obtained funding for the expansion from grants, a city bond, the library’s capital budget and special reserve fund. 

Highland Park City Council voted on Sept. 8 to approve providing the library a short-term loan of up to $1 million, if necessary, to cover emergency repairs or unforeseen costs incurred from the expansion. 

Highland Park Library’s Reimagine Your Library campaign set a $1 million public fundraising goal for its capital campaign.

As of Sept. 23, the campaign has received $74,997 from 134 gifts. and eight different pledges have also committed $445,000 over the next five years, Jill Alfrejd, communications manager for the library, said in an email.

Two spaces in the expansion — the Alvin H. Baum Family Fund Community Meeting Room and the Rob and Terri Olian Youth Activity Room — will recognize the recent donors.

“People mattered to Al and Ann Baum, the couple the Alvin H. Baum Family Fund is named for. Al was a lifelong resident of Highland Park, and he would want his neighbors to have a library that meets the community’s needs,” said Joel M. Friedman, president of the fund, in the news release.

So far, the ongoing construction has involved excavation-work, the installation of utility infrastructure and the prepping the foundation for the new addition and elevator. Interior work has focused on the demolition of existing spaces and preparing for the future creative studio and elevator.

More than 203,000 people visit the library every year with 16,000 attending programs and checking out 513,000 items, according to the library. The library has remained open for use during the expansion; construction is still on track to complete in the fall of 2026, Alfrejd said.

The Highland Park Public Library first opened in 1931 as a 20,000-square-foot building. Two previous additions in 1960 and 1976 brought the facility to its current square footage of 47,050 square feet.

“We are incredibly grateful for the leadership and generosity of the Alvin H. Baum Family Fund and Rob and Terri Olian,” said Heidi Smith, executive director of the Highland Park Public Library, in the release. “Their gifts inspire others to join us in building a library that meets the needs of today and tomorrow.”

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