Sycamore Township trustees will hold another public hearing on the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church development proposal Tuesday, August 11, after two earlier sessions ended without a vote on the project at 7701 Kenwood Road.
The township posted formal notice of the hearing Friday. The case, ZC-2026-7, involves a Planned Unit Development II application to modify the church property near Kenwood Towne Centre. As we reported July 21, trustees held a hearing that day. No vote resulted.
The township posted video of the July 21 session on Wednesday, July 22, but has not published minutes or explained why the case was continued again. August 11 falls on the second Tuesday of the month, outside the board's normal first-and-third-Tuesday schedule, indicating a special session.
What the project involves
Josh Shaw of The Kleingers Group filed the PUD II application on behalf of the church. The plan calls for modifications to the existing building, demolition of some structures, parking lot reconfiguration, landscaping updates and entrance changes on the roughly 2.34-acre site. Post-construction parking would drop from 166 spaces to 164.
The project triggers the PUD II designation because its proposed impervious surface ratio of 81.05% exceeds the township's 65% threshold, according to application documents filed by Shaw.
Why it keeps getting continued
The case first went before the Sycamore Township Zoning Commission on Thursday, May 14, then moved to the Board of Trustees. At the first trustee hearing on Tuesday, June 16, Chairman Thomas J. Weidman called the session to order, but trustees said staff had not had enough time to review the applicant's most recent plans.
Trustee Tracy Schwegmann moved 3-0 to continue the hearing to July 21 and set a Tuesday, July 14 deadline for Shaw's team to submit landscape renderings, an updated perspective view, material samples, and a shared parking agreement. "Those are the items that have been identified, but there may be additional requirements that Mr. Holbert will relay to the applicant," Schwegmann said at the June 16 hearing, referring to Planning & Zoning Administrator Harry Holbert Jr.
How residents can weigh in
The August 11 hearing will be held at the Township Administration Building, 8540 Kenwood Road. Previous hearings on this case began at 5:30 p.m., though the exact start time for August 11 has not been confirmed. The meeting will be live-streamed and recorded at WatchSycamoreTownship.com. Residents can also contact the township at 513-791-8447 during office hours, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
