Northfield hopes code changes pave way for more restaurants

Northfield has prepared and served changes for how it defines a restaurant, a move that officials hope will attract more food service businesses to town.

The modifications to the zoning code, which were unanimously approved during the Northfield Village Board’s regular meeting on Tuesday, July 16, came about from a discussion at a committee of the whole meeting in March.

At that time, Tim Frenzer, who was serving as Northfield’s interim village manager, suggested redefining what the Village considered a restaurant, noting that the existing definition was too narrow, serving only a full-service restaurant.

“But what you find is that now, in order to attract restaurants and to compete to attract restaurants, it’s beneficial to come up with a more nuanced definition,” Frenzer said in March, while noting that Northfield’s surrounding communities had definitions “that run four or five layers deep that contemplate all different types of restaurants.”

He added that, because the definition was so specific, it provided challenges to food service businesses that weren’t full-service restaurants and wanted to come to Northfield. Previously, any restaurant that wasn’t full-service had to go through a special use process.

Steve Gutierrez, Northfield’s community development director, said Tuesday that following the March meeting trustees directed Village staff to begin working on Frenzer’s suggestion.

Amendments were unanimously supported by the Village’s Planning and Zoning Commission on July 1.

With Tuesday’s vote, the Village now defines a restaurant as, “An eating place open to the public … where food and beverages are prepared and sold ready for consumption,” while also stating that “a bakery, coffee shop or ice/cream dessert shop, or food store that sells prepared food incidental to their principal product shall not be considered a restaurant.”

Further, the Northfield Village Code now has three additional definitions: one for a fast-food restaurant, which includes “a business that predominantly provides home delivery or carry-out services”; one for a full-service restaurant; and one for a limited-service restaurant, where “food is generally designed to be consumed with utensils (and) at a table,” but has the option for food to be delivered or picked up.

In response to a question from Trustee Barnaby Dinges about how the Village plans on informing restaurant owners about the zoning changes, Gutierrez said he has several ideas, including some he has already worked on.

“I’ve actually been reporting to the (Winnetka-Northfield-Glencoe) Chamber of Commerce that these changes are being considered, so I will report to them as well and ask them to maybe push some information out through their network,” Gutierrez said, adding that he will also be reaching out to commercial property owners with whom the Village has worked.

“And I think this is a signal to them that we understand, particularly for restaurants, the challenges they face and what a challenge it is to open a restaurant,” he said. “We recognize that, we’re trying to do our best to accommodate those kinds of desirable uses.”

Trustees also indicated that they were interested in exploring a suggestion from the Plan & Zoning Commission to consider allowing food service businesses along Northfield Road, which is currently zoned for industrial businesses.

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