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Park Ridge mayor says he does not object to financial services office opening in Uptown

Park Ridge Mayor Marty Maloney said he does not object to a businessman’s proposal to open an office in Uptown, despite vetoing a similar request last month.

“I don’t think it’s apples to apples,” Maloney said of the Edward Jones financial services office proposed for 131 N. Northwest Highway and Pusheen Corporation, which was denied a special-use permit to open a first-floor office at 104 Main St. after Maloney vetoed prior City Council approval.

The City Council on Aug. 6 tentatively voted 5-2 in support of the Edward Jones office. Business owner Jeffery Larsen said he is looking to open inside the former Ridgeway Cleaners across from the Shops of Uptown.

Second Ward Ald. Nicholas Milissis and 4th Ward Ald. Roger Shubert voted against the proposal.

Under the city’s zoning ordinance, special approval is required in order for an office to occupy the first floor of a building within Uptown’s business district, as “retail, restaurant, entertainment and pedestrian-oriented service uses” are recommended under the city’s Uptown Plan.

A final vote on the office request is expected during the City Council’s Aug. 20 meeting.

Maloney, responding to questions from 7th Ward Ald. Marty Joyce on Aug. 6, said the requests for the Edward Jones office and the Pusheen office are different because they are not located within the same part of Uptown.

“My objection to [Pusheen] on Main Street asking for a special-use was driven essentially by the location and what is happening [on Main Street],” Maloney said.

The mayor said last month that Main Street has several existing businesses that are “drawing people to the area,” and he did not feel that an office that is not open to the public would be compatible or the best use for the ground floor of 104 Main St. The space was previously a Wells Fargo Home Mortgage office.

The mayor’s veto of Pusheen was upheld by the City Council, which needed a supermajority vote to override the veto allow the company to occupy the space.

Pusheen Corporation also has offices on the second floor of 104 Main St., where the company did not require special approval, and on the ground floor of 110 S. Prospect Ave. The City Council approved a special-use for the Prospect location in 2017.

Members of the Park Ridge Planning and Zoning Commission recommended City Council approval of both the Edward Jones office and the Pusheen office on Main Street. On July 24, Planning and Zoning Commissioner John Bennett said he considered the investment office a “pedestrian-oriented service” because it would bring people to the area for a specific service, as opposed to a company office that is closed to the public.