Neighbors critical of a proposed Porsche dealership and retail development on the Motor Werks of Barrington campus say the plan is too intrusive.
Representatives from seven surrounding neighborhoods aired their concerns Tuesday night at a crowded Barrington Plan Commission meeting.
The Murgado Automotive Group, which acquired the Motor Werks property in March 2023, plans to build a two-story stand-alone dealership at the northwest corner of Grove Avenue and Dundee Road.
The group also envisions a new four-story parking structure to house 492 vehicles with a 10,000-square-foot restaurant/retail space on the first floor.
“We’re not Schaumburg. We’re not Miami. We don’t want to be,” said Hillshire Drive resident Britt Casey, speaking as a member of the We Live Here coalition, which consists of 425 homes next to the property.
Residents said the campus, located near Dundee and Barrington roads, has been overdeveloped since approved in 1986. They claim the numerous variations granted by the village have compromised the residential character of the area. Now they are fed up.
“Since 1986, we have been tethered to the whims and commercial gains of Motor Werks,” Casey said.
The proposed rendering of the Porsche dealership proposed on the Motor Werks of Barrington campus.
Courtesy of the village of Barrington
Mario Murgado, whose group also owns Honda Libertyville, said it has been his dream to own the site.
“I always had my sights on this,” he said. “It’s a place that’s a candy store, I would say, of the automobile industry.”
Barrington Assistant Director of Development Services Jennifer Tennant offered several suggestions from village staff, including lowering the proposed height of the parking garage from 48 feet to 38 feet, as well as eliminating the retail use in favor of additional screening.
Residents attending Tuesday’s Barrington Plan Commission hearing crowded into two rooms to discuss proposed redevelopment of the Motor Werks site.
Steve Zalusky/szalusky@dailyherald.com
Pershing Court resident Lisa Wax said neighbors are concerned that Motor Werks is becoming an attractive target for crime.
She called for barriers around the site, including boulders, hedges and fences.
Residents also called for the elimination of car-carrying trucks along Grove Avenue.
Wax said the carriers operate 24/7 and have come into conflict with traffic along Grove and, in one instance, drove into a neighboring subdivision while trying to back into the campus.
The commission continued the matter to Aug. 13 at 6:30 p.m.