Plans & delivery · Wilmette
Optima’s public benefits reach beyond the condo site
The 128-unit approval connects to offsite affordable housing, a crosswalk and 25 public parking spaces on separate Village land. Approval alone does not show when those benefits were delivered.
Why this connection matters
Following only the development parcel misses the proposed public parking site at 1225 Central Avenue and housing elsewhere in Wilmette. The next useful connection is from approval conditions to payments, permits and completed public benefits.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-15. Source dates and event dates appear below.
- Development proposal
- 128 units
- Housing contribution references
- $3,815,000 / $3,815,500
- Offsite parking commitment
- 25 spaces
Condominium units described in the approved project chronology; not occupied homes.
Source record [1]
Two amounts in the same municipal draft, pages 26 and 25. Neither establishes cash received.
Source record [4]
Additional public spaces proposed for 1225 Central Avenue; completion not verified.
Source record [2]
Follow the records
Source record · 2024-10-22
Preliminary approval covered a 128-unit proposal
The Village records a 6–1 approval on October 22, 2024. Its project page distinguishes preliminary approval from the final-plan step that precedes construction permits.
Source record · 2024-10-22
Public benefits were proposed at other locations
The staff memo includes developer funding for a Green Bay Road crossing near Washington Avenue and 25 additional public spaces on Village-owned land at 1225 Central Avenue. The memo describes revised commitments, not completed facilities.
Source record · 2024-10-22
The proposed benefits run on different clocks
The posted proposed ordinance puts the $3,815,000 housing contribution before building permits other than demolition permits. It allows the 1225 Central parking work within one year after the final certificate of occupancy. These proposed triggers explain which later records to seek; the executed conditions still need confirmation.
Source record · 2025-04-08
A later Board action exists beyond the project-page timeline
The April 8 action summary records a PUD grant for 721–739 Green Bay Road and an ordinance concerning an Optima special service area and public hearing. This is later evidence than the October preliminary decision; it does not establish permit issuance.
Source record
The housing document separates approval from implementation
An undated municipal draft says Optima is approved but has not applied for construction permits. Page 25 lists $3,815,500; page 26 says $3,815,000. The $500 difference remains unresolved. The draft reports 16 homes purchased and resold through the earlier Verdana-funded community land trust; it does not attribute those homes to Lumina.
Source record · 2026-04-28
A dated 2026 update ties payment to a permit milestone
At the April 28, 2026 Board meeting, staff reported that Optima was obtaining its Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) permit. The approved minutes describe an approximately $3.8 million housing contribution payable when the building permit is issued. This is a dated staff update, not an issued permit or receipt; the rounded amount does not resolve the draft’s $500 discrepancy.
What the evidence does not establish
- The final executed contribution amount or an explanation for the $500 discrepancy.
- Receipt of Lumina contribution money or delivery of Lumina-funded affordable homes.
- Current permit, construction or occupancy status; neither the undated draft nor the April 28, 2026 staff update is a current permit ledger.
- Completion of the proposed public parking or crosswalk.
The next records to check
Final PUD ordinance and public-benefit agreements
Confirm the enforceable amount, payment trigger, deadlines and responsibility for offsite work.
Issued construction and MWRD permits for 721–739 Green Bay Road
Trace the April 2026 permit-process report to issued permits and dated construction records.
Housing-fund receipts and public-benefit completion records
Join the obligation to money actually received and completed facilities or aggregate housing acquisitions; an approval is not a receipt.
Read the original sources
- 1.Optima Lumina: approval chronology and final-plan process
Village of Wilmette · October 22, 2024 update; Submittal of Final Plan section
- 2.October 22, 2024 public-benefit revisions
Village of Wilmette · dated 2024-10-22 · PDF pages 1–2, Public benefit revisions
- 3.April 8, 2025 Village Board action summary
Village of Wilmette · dated 2025-04-08 · PDF page 1, items 2 and 3
- 4.Draft analysis of housing needs and policy in Wilmette
Village of Wilmette · Draft 1, PDF pages 25–26. Document itself is undated; the file label refers to Housing Commission review. This is a draft, not an adopted audit.
- 5.Proposed Ordinance 2024-O-71 with updated attachments
Village of Wilmette · dated 2024-10-22 · PDF page 5, section 3.1; pages 7–8, section 4.1. Posted proposed ordinance; executed final text was not verified.
- 6.April 28, 2026 Village Board minutes: Optima permit and payment update
Village of Wilmette · dated 2026-04-28 · PDF pages 6–7, Optima Lumina staff update; minutes approved May 12, 2026. A dated permitting report, not an issued permit or payment receipt.