The Chicago Bears took another step toward a potential new stadium at the Arlington International Racecourse site when the village of Arlington Heights on Friday issued for interior demolition of the grandstand, office and jockey building at the racetrack.
Arlington Heights spokesperson Avis Meade confirmed that the village had approved plans for the first phase of demolition at the old racetrack, marking another move toward a $5 billion NFL stadium and accompanying mixed-use residential, commercial and entertainment district the team has proposed to build on the 326-acre racetrack in Arlington Heights.
“Increased truck traffic due to the interior demolition is possible in the area and the property will continue to be monitored by security 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” Meade wrote in an email to Pioneer Press.
A Bears representative confirmed the team had been permitted to begin work and said they expected to start the process Tuesday. The team will not use explosives or implosion to execute the job, they said.
Meade said the village and Cook County would review and approve applications for demolition of the exterior buildings on the site. Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes said earlier this month that the village had fielded a number of questions and comments from residents about the team’s request to do demolition work. He said the village board did not have the authority to approve or deny the team’s request.
The Daily Herald recently reported, “After 8-year fight, judge says Barrington Hills horse boarding law is constitutional.” We’ve learned before that article was published, another commercial horse boarding related suit was filed in Cook County on April 25th, and it can be found here.
Ordinance 16-22, referred to in the filing, can be found here. Audio recordings of the Trustee’s discussions prior to approving that ordinance can be heard here.
“PUBLIC HEARING Before the Zoning Board of Appeals Village of Barrington Hills Re: 364 Ridge Road, Barrington Hills, IL Application for Variation Notice is hereby given that a Public Hearing will be held at a Special Meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Village of Barrington Hills, commencing at 6:30 PM, May 23, 2023, concerning an application for a variation pursuant to section 5-10-4 of the Village Code to reduce the required interior side yard setback from 50 feet to 47 feet, 9 inches at the property bearing the address of 364 Ridge Road, Barrington Hills, Illinois.
A copy of the application for zoning relief is available for examination in the Clerk’s office by appointment and will also be included in the agenda packet. The agenda will post no later than the end of the day on May 19, 2023 at www.vbhil.gov. All those interested will be given an opportunity to be heard. Written comments on the application will be made part of the record of this proceeding, and questions posed in such comment will be asked. All written comments should be mailed/emailed to the Village Clerk to be received by 3:00 PM, May 23, 2023. By: Village Clerk Village of Barrington Hills 112 Algonquin Road Barrington Hills, IL 60010 clerk@vbhil.gov.”
The Barrington Hills Park District Board will hold a, “Park Board & Decennial Committee on Local Government Efficiency,” meeting this evening in person and via Zoom at 7:00 PM. Topics on their agenda include:
A Cook County judge has ruled a Barrington Hills ordinance allowing commercial horse boarding at Oakwood Farms and other places to be constitutional, rejecting arguments that conspiracy and corruption were the basis of its adoption. (Daily Herald file photo, 2011)
A Cook County judge has called constitutional a Barrington Hills ordinance permitting commercial horse boarding as a home-occupation business in the historically equestrian-friendly village, rejecting claims of corruption.
The 8-year-old litigation that resulted in a 21-day trial was born of a neighbor dispute that dominated local politics in Barrington Hills for a time about a dozen years ago.
“I believe it vindicates a number of people,” said attorney James Kelly, who represented a party of intervenors in plaintiff Jim Drury’s lawsuit against the village. “I think it was a good decision.”
Drury — who lives next door to Benjamin and Cathleen LeCompte’s Oakwood Farms, where a 60-horse commercial boarding operation existed — argued the facility’s imposition on his residential peace and quiet clearly was forbidden by existing village code regulating home-occupation businesses in 2011.
Drury tried through lawsuits, newspaper advertisements and official testimony to suggest village officials at that time were refusing to acknowledge this and instead were pandering to the Riding Club of Barrington Hills and other equestrian interests.
While Drury conceded the LeComptes had the right to keep 60 of their own horses on the 130-acre property, he said the number of employees and clients that visited his residential neighborhood most days clearly marked Oakwood Farms as a commercial enterprise.
In claiming political motivations in the village, Drury pointed to $5,000 donations LeCompte made to each of the trustee candidates then-Village President Robert Abboud supported in the 2011 election — Joe Messer, Karen Selman and Patty Meroni.
That money was returned to LeCompte when the State Board of Elections determined he had not been properly identified by the candidates as the original source of the funding.
What follows was recently posted to the Village website:
“I strived to make Barrington Hills’ government a model for Illinois communities and our Village a more attractive place to live,” said Trustee Bryan Croll reflecting upon his time as Village Trustee. “I would say we proved that reducing taxes can be done; that raising taxes doesn’t have to be the norm. Admittedly, it takes time to analyze spending habits but it is a worthwhile effort.”
Homeowners would agree. During his two terms as Village Trustee, residents realized a Village property tax savings of almost 22%. “We reduced Village spending and the property tax levy for eight years while maintaining healthy cash balances,” said Croll satisfyingly.
He was elected to office in 2015 and appointed by the Board as a Member of the Building & Zoning Trustee Committee, but his biggest role was his appointment as Chairman of the Finance Committee where he rolled up his sleeves and delved into examining Village operations and its finances.
He researched and collected data of which schedules of annual revenues and expenditures were created going back to 2008 to allow for easy historical comparisons and accountability. These schedules have been incorporated into the monthly Board of Trustees meetings.
He further assisted in investigating and reporting on the investment performance of the Police Pension Fund, noting the poor returns and recommending a new manager, a change that was implemented.
Anyone who knows Trustee Croll or has listened to a Board meeting knows he is a numbers guy, instantly converting numbers into percentages no matter the subject, be it about the Village budget, personnel topics, or the Village road program–he will find the numbers! …X miles of road with a cost of X dollars per mile comes to about X percent of road over a period of X equals X. To support an initiative, Trustee Croll took into consideration if it met with the Village’s code and if it was in the best interest of all residents—a telltale of his devotion to our community and integrity as Trustee.
All throughout his tenure of eight years, Trustee Croll continued to be in tune with Village operations. Two years into his term, he was appointed to the Personnel Committee, replacing his role on the Building & Zoning Committee. Once again, after careful analysis, he endorsed cost-saving measures streamlining services and operations for Village staff, including the Treasurer, village engineer, and village attorney.
He supported outsourcing the 911 call center to QuadCom Police Dispatch, saving the Village over $300,000 per year, or in Trustee Croll‘s lingo: $300,000 per year, over seven years, comes to over two million dollars in savings thus far, not including the adjustment for inflation.
He promoted open space and cooperation with conservation groups, supported efforts to maintain Barrington Hills’ residential five-acre zoning, and the efforts to resolve pending legal issues.
Trustee Bryan Croll opted not to run for a third term. His talents lay well within the layers of negotiation and financial prowess. He had the natural ability to delineate the issues at hand and unfold a solution. Like Trustee Colleen Konicek Hannigan, his term as Trustee began when community issues divided residents.
“I wanted to give back to the community I grew up in and build a culture of transparency and responsiveness to community concerns. I believe I contributed to that. I enjoyed working and collaborating with my fellow trustees, Village staff, and other dedicated people who make our Village an outstanding place to live. They are all talented and hard working. I cherish the time I spent as a Trustee and value our accomplishments.”
Thank you, Trustee Bryan Croll, for your ardor for Village finances and mathematical wizardry, copious hours of analysis and preparation, and your unwavering integrity in serving the Village of Barrington Hills!
Monday, April 24, will be Trustee Croll’s last Board Meeting as next month the newly elected Trustees will be sworn in to complete the new Board.
A bison grazes in 2013 in a forest in eastern Poland. Kane County Forest Preserve Commissioners approved a plan this week to bring bison to the Burlington Prairie Forest Preserve. (Associated Press)
It’s been 200 hundred years since bison roamed the prairies of Kane County, but a new plan to reintroduce them into a local forest preserve may turn back the clock.
Kane County Forest Preserve commissioners approved a plan this week to bring a handful of bison to the Burlington Prairie Forest Preserve. The plan centers on one of the main ecological goals of restoring tallgrass prairie to the county’s preserves. Before the surrounding area developed, fire and the grazing habits of wild animals, such as bison, provided natural management of the grasslands. Preserve officials reintroduced controlled burns to the preserves many years ago.
Executive director Ben Haberthur told commissioners now is the time to reintroduce bison to restore the grazing aspect of grassland management. Up to 90% of the diet for bison is grasses.
“The grasses evolved with grazing,” Haberthur said. “So it actually promotes the soil microbiome to grow more. Bison are native to Illinois, and they are definitely native to this county. They will bring a big component back to the ecosystem, namely fertilizer.”
District officials experimented with the benefits of animal grazing in the preserves with cattle in the Aurora West Forest Preserve. That experiment resulted in the flourishing of the restored grasslands in the preserve. Officials see bison as the next step in returning the grasslands to their most natural state and care.
The Burlington Prairie Forest Preserve is in the Pleasant Valley Conservation Alley north of Huntley and in the northwest portion of the county. The plan calls for two paddocks of 30 acres each with an additional 89 acres seeded for pasture. For the safety of the animals and the public, the areas containing the bison would be fenced, which accounts for the bulk of the initial cost of the project.
Editorial note: As we’ve suggested before, there is ample acreage at Horizon Farm for the Forest Preserves of Cook County to consider such an endeavor.
On August 22, 2018, the Illinois State Commemorative Dates Act was amended to include:
Sec. 195. Day of the Horse. The fifth day of March of each year shall be designated as the Day of the Horse, to be observed throughout the State as a day to encourage citizens to honor and celebrate the role of equines in the history and character of Illinois, and to recognize the benefits of the equine industry to the economy, agriculture, tourism, and quality of life in Illinois.
For the benefit of those who may be new to our Village, we’d like to provide a list of a few Village Codes applicable to the keeping of horses in Barrington Hills. In no particular order, they are:
APPLICATION FOR LICENSE: As a condition to his or her use of the equestrian trails located in the village, every owner of a horse shall file an application with the village clerk or his designee, setting forth the name and address of the applicant and a description of the horse for which the license is desired. The annual fee to be paid for an equestrian trail license is ten dollars ($10.00). All such licenses issued under this section 8-5-2 shall expire on April 30 following the date of issuance.
MANURE PILES: It shall be unlawful to: (A) Pile manure from horses or ponies, or permit it to accumulate, closer than one hundred feet (100′) from the property line of the property on which a horse is kept. (B) Permit a pile or accumulation of manure for more than one week except in the months of December through March inclusive at any location within three hundred fifty feet (350′) of the nearest dwelling house of another.
BOARDING AND TRAINING OF HORSES: Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this subsection (D), the boarding of horses in a stable and the training of horses and their riders shall be a permitted home occupation; provided, that no persons engaged to facilitate such boarding, other than the immediate family residing on the premises, shall be permitted to carry out their functions except between the hours of eight o’clock (8:00) A.M. and eight o’clock (8:00) P.M. or sunset, whichever is later, and further provided that no vehicles or machinery, other than that belonging to the immediate family residing on the premises shall be permitted to be operated on the premises except during the hours of eight o’clock (8:00) A.M. and eight o’clock (8:00) P.M. or sunset, whichever is later. (Ord. 16-22, 12-7-2016)
Lighting for outdoor activities, including: pool areas, tennis courts, paddle courts, hockey and/or skating rinks, horse arenas; provided such lighting shall be extinguished by eleven o’clock (11:00) P.M.
Questions, comments or concerns can be directed to the Village Equestrian Commission here, or to the Trustee Liaison to the Commission, Laura S. Ekstrom, here.
