Rooftop pergola designs for the mixed-use building at 120 E. Scranton Ave. go before Lake Bluff's Architectural Board of Review on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
The board's agenda lists four items for the 7 p.m. session at Village Hall, 40 E. Center Ave. A fifth item, a design review for pickleball courts at Artesian Park, was withdrawn.
120 E. Scranton pergolas
The 120 E. Scranton Ave. project has been before Lake Bluff boards multiple times. The Village Board granted final plan approval and zoning variations for a planned mixed-use development at that address on Feb. 24, 2025. The ABR reviewed the multi-family building's design in February and March 2025. Tuesday's review focuses on rooftop pergola designs. No staff memo or applicant drawings for the Sept. 1 meeting were publicly available as of Saturday, Aug. 29.
Kunes Chevrolet sign permit
The board will also consider a sign permit for Kunes Chevrolet, the dealership that replaced The Exchange on Sherwood Drive. The Kunes Group purchased the Chevy dealership and removed two wall signs reading "The Exchange" from the building's north and east facades, according to a village staff memorandum prepared for the board's June meeting.
Bright Light Sign Company proposed replacing the east-facade sign with one reading "Kunes." The new sign would be slightly taller (2 feet 4 inches versus the previous 22 inches) but shorter in length (12 feet 5¾ inches versus 15 feet 5¾ inches). The sign complies with the village's area limit but requires a code exemption to allow two separate signs on the east facade. A similar exemption was granted in 2013.
The ABR recommended approval of the Kunes sign permit at its June 2 meeting, according to the June 5 Lake Bluff Letter. Why the item reappears on the Sept. 1 agenda is unclear. The Sept. 1 agenda lists the dealership address as 1001 Sherwood Drive; earlier documents used 1 Sherwood Terrace.
Lake Forest Bank & Trust and outdoor dining
The board will review replacement door and window designs at Lake Forest Bank & Trust, 4 E. Scranton Ave. No details on the scope were available.
A staff report on outdoor dining rounds out the agenda. The item is described as a "follow-up on past discussion of outdoor dining," though the date and substance of that earlier discussion were not detailed in available records.
How to attend
The meeting is open in person and remotely. Residents can join online at lakebluff.org/VirtualABR, by phone at (312) 626-6799 (meeting ID 883 8475 2019), or watch the live stream at lakebluff.org/Channel19. ABR Chair Robert D. Hunter presides. Residents needing accessibility accommodations can contact Village Administrator R. Drew Irvin at (847) 234-0774.
