City Council Snapshot: Morning Booze, Speed Limits and the 2030 Plan

Like most Naperville City Council meetings, Tuesday night's was jam-packed with decisions that residents care about.

Take a glimpse of a few of the issues that found their way to the council table.

Good morning! Need a drink?

Those who enjoyed the luxury during football season of buying booze on Sunday mornings in Naperville can now continue their weekly habit.

The council voted 7-1 Tuesday to extend the and allowed packaged liquors to be sold starting at 8 a.m. on Sundays—four hours sooner than ever before.

City officials initially supported the time change because studies suggested residents were traveling to nearby cities, like Bolingbrook, Plainfield or Aurora, to buy alcohol earlier. Bolingbrook allows the sale of liquor beginning at 8 a.m., and Aurora and Plainfield allow sales to begin at 10 a.m., according to council documents.

Jewel-Osco was among the stores that collected information for Naperville through a study that used data from customers' "Preferred Cards." The cards are scanned when items are purchased, and they can track shoppers' purchasing activities.

The study——found that during an eight-week period, Naperville residents made $706,174 in Sunday purchases that included liquor at Jewel stores in neighboring communities. That value includes incremental food purchases, the report said.

Although the city didn't gain that value between October 2010 and January 2011, it did see an increase of more than $30,000 in liquor sales, Jewel-Osco Assistant Secretary Connie Zaio said Tuesday.

“We got tremendous support from our customers,” she said.

Driving 30 mph is A-OK

The council voted 4-3 to keep the 30 mph speed limit for the stretch of Ford Lane between Washington Street and Baker Lane, as well as for all of Baker Lane.

The motion on the table was to reduce that speed by 5 mph to 25.

A resident requested that speed studies be completed to establish neighborhood speed limits, according to council documents. The study revealed that most drivers were cruising at about 30 mph down those streets.

"Just as an anecdotal comment from two residents I talked to last night, one was in favor of 30 and one was in favor of 25," Councilman Kenn Miller said. "I think we can leave it at 30 mph."

Council applauds 2030 plan

The council conducted a first reading Tuesday of its Downtown 2030 Plan, which deals with growth and guides changes in the city's downtown area.

The reading followed a 60-day public comment period during which six people weighed in, as well as a recommendation for approval from the Downtown Advisory Commission.

"Downtown Naperville 2030: Planning the Downtown Experience is not intended to dramatically change the environment, character and culture of the downtown," said council documents. "Rather, the plan will draw upon the principals defined within the 2000 Naperville Downtown Plan to ensure that Naperville remains a vibrant, attractive and distinct place offering shopping, living and leisure-time environments."

Miller called the plan a "world class document."

"It's one of the better that I've seen," he said. 'There are a lot of details, a lot of beautiful graphics which illustrate what it looks like and what it might look like in the future."

Councilman Paul Hinterlong asked for clarification on building heights and architecture. Some of the proposed heights are 60 feet tall, he said, and that's a 20 foot increase from existing buildings. Councilman Robert Fieseler dovetailed, asking about the possibility of sloped rooftops to make such a jump more aesthetically pleasing.

Overall, the council had few qualms with the plan.

"I support this. It's had plenty of time in the barrel, so to speak," Councilman Richard Furstenau said.