Busy Elmhurst Intersection May Get More So

ELMHURST, IL – You would not be alone if you consider the intersection of Route 83 and North Avenue congested. The city of Elmhurst says it is one of the state's busiest.

Now, the gas station at the southwest corner wants to expand to offer diesel pumps for trucks, including semis.

However, a lawyer for a nearby property owner said the bigger station would be a truck stop and thus prohibited under the city's code. A representative of the Shell gas station disagreed.

The plan is to level Mack's Golden Pheasant restaurant at 668 W. North Ave. to make way for the gas pumps.

The lawyer for the next-door business complex filed an objection. The complex includes Starbucks and ATI Physical Therapy.

"It became obvious this is not going to be an extension of a gas station, but something more intense," attorney Arnold Karolewski with the Chicago-based Chuhak & Tecson law firm told a City Council committee on Monday night.

He said the new station would be a truck stop, which Elmhurst's code bars.

"It's an unlawful use," Karolewski said to the committee. "You must recommend to the City Council that all zoning relief sought by the petitioner be denied."

However, Tim Shoemaker, an engineer representing the gas station, said state law defines truck stops and that the proposed expansion is not one.

"It does have truck fueling, but it is not a truck stop," said Shoemaker, who works for Schaumburg-based RTM Engineering Consultants.

Tim Shoemaker, an engineer representing the Shell gas station at Route 83 and North Avenue, says a proposed expanded station would not be a truck stop. (David Giuliani/Patch)

Alderwoman Marti Deuter, chairwoman of the council's Development, Planning and Zoning Committee, said the proposal was not a truck stop, but a more intense use than the typical gas station.

Because the intersection was so busy, Deuter said she would need to see an accident analysis for 2023 from the Illinois Department of Transportation, or IDOT, before deciding.

In 2022, the intersection saw a spike in crashes, but Deuter said she wanted to see if that was an aberration or the beginning of a trend.

"I have some pretty serious concerns about whether this is a workable proposal for this location," Deuter said.

The Department of Transportation has been asked to do a full analysis of the proposal, which is expected to take months.

Shoemaker asked, "If IDOT said, 'We love it,' would the committee's concerns be assuaged?"

Deuter said she would have to look at the department's report.

"I still think it's the intensity of use," she said, adding it's an already congested intersection.

The plan for an expanded gas station at North Avenue and Route 83 would involve tearing down Mack's Golden Pheasant restaurant. (David Giuliani/Patch)