Audio recordings from the February 8th Plan Commission meeting are available for review on the Village website. Most of the nearly two and a half hour meeting was devoted to review and revision of the Tree Preservation Ordinance.
Two guest speakers began the meeting, each with different perspectives to share with the commission regarding the subject. The first shared her expertise with what have come to be termed “heritage” trees in the area, and the second speaker reviewed tree ordinances that she has encountered in suburban Chicago.
One idea that seemed to pique the interest of some on the commission was requiring the home builder to create an escrow account to cover the cost of planting trees to replace those removed during construction. This is similar to requiring a performance bond of home builders, which some municipalities require as a matter of course through their codes.
Some suggested that if the trees are not replaced by the homeowner after occupancy, then the escrow monies would go to an organization such as Citizens for Conservation, but this might defeat the purpose of ordinance. Perhaps if the homeowner decided to forego reforesting their property, the Village would step in and do so with the funds available.
Copies of the existing ordinance and a newly drafted one were then reviewed, however some commission members would have preferred to see a redlined version which would have been much more productive. Village Administrator Bob Kosin stated he would provide one after the meeting. Copies of the old and new draft ordinance from the meeting can be viewed and downloaded here.
The menu of edited recordings by topic from the meeting can be accessed here.
Leave a Reply