Trustees Want Residents’ Questions Answered Before Taking Next Step on County Master Plan

 trustees did not vote on Lake County’s proposed master plan for a government center on the north end of town Tuesday. Trustees say they would like to address residents’ concerns and see more details of the plan before voting.

After hearing residents concerns, Trustee Donna Johnson wanted the county and village staff to collaborate more and address some of those issues in detail.

Trustee Jay Justice echoed Johnson’s sentiments, saying that it is “imperative” that the county listen to the residents’ ideas and to make them continually involved in the development of the 172-acre Lake County government center west of Milwaukee Avenue and north of Winchester Road.

“I believe, in order to get this approved, you are going to have to incorporate some of their ideas,” Justice said.

After three hours of discussions, even Mayor Terry Weppler said he was not sure what the county plans to build on the property, a major sticking point for residents, too.

Residents want more details and involvement

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“The proposal as currently submitted by the Lake County for its property at Winchester and Milwaukee Avenue does have some positive aspects and has allowed the village to understand how the infrastructure may or could ultimately look when it’s built out,” said Lynda Waddick, resident of Cedar Glen subdivision. “However, Lake County continues to say we don’t know what services they will build on the site. They want maximum flexibility to build whatever they want when the time comes without having to come back to the public.”

The property is zoned as an Institutional Buildings District, which permits the county to build drug-rehabilitation, probation, mental health or substance-abuse facilities on the land. The master plan calls for eight zones; two are special-use permit zones that would require the county to go through the planning process. The remaining six are permitted-use zones that would only require the county give public notice of what it intends to build on the site.

The county designed a master plan for the property at the request of the village, but it has not listed specific uses because they aren’t known, according to Matt Guarnery, Lake County’s construction project manager. The Plan Commission voted 5-1 to approve the county's plan in June.

Residents say they are concerned that the vague language in the permitted use zones could allow the county to build facilities that could invite criminal elements, such as ex-offenders or sex offenders, into the community.

Waddick says she understands the county has owned the property for more than 100 years, but in that time schools, and playgrounds such as the , and have been built around the site. She is concerned that her children no longer will be able to walk around the community alone.

In addition, residents say they would like to stay involved with the development.

“Given the lack of specifics in the county plan, we need to maintain a public voice throughout the duration of the master plan,” said Rick Marder, a spokesman for Citizens United for Healthy Development in Libertyville.

"I know it’s not our land, but it is our community," said Steve Doolak, one of the more than 50 residents who attended the meeting.

The Village Board meeting was moved to the , 135 W. Church St., to accommodate the large turnout.

Lake County made some concessions

Lake County officials say they have listened to residents’ concerns and have made some concessions at previous meetings, including withdrawing the controversial options of building a jail, hospitals or schools on the site.

“The county did, voluntarily, prohibit the development of correctional institutions on our site, because that was a large concerns of the residents of Libertyville,” said Lake County representative Matt Guarnery. “We felt that was the responsible thing to do in the process.”

Guarnery says county officials also are striving for dark-sky night-lighting principles, which would shield lighting from direct view of adjacent residents.

“Residents had suggested that lighting standards follow LEEDS lighting standards,” Guarnery said referring to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards, which provide a framework for constructing sustainable buildings. “We evaluated that, and we agreed in our current proposal that we will abide by LEEDS standards for the exterior lighting for the site, parking lot and development zones six and eight, which are the two residential zones that abut residential.”

In addition the two zones also will be designed to limit interior lighting pollution that follow LEEDS standards. The county also agreed to preserve mature trees or landscaping that already exists, according to Guarnery.

“We tried to determine what uses would best serve the county and best serve … the village,” Guarnery said.

Mayor wants clarity on final plan

Residents, however, say they want clarity on exactly what the final plan looks like because past discussions have not been reflected clearly in the master plans.

“Fifteen to 20 years from now, when the county wants to build something, what documents are we going to refer to? It better be clear, comprehensive, or something might be allowed that was not intended,” said Marder, of Citizens United for Healthy Development in Libertyville. “Who here will be around on the Village Board or staff that can explain the agreement? We should compile all documentation from the county and all forms of script that modify the original application and create one application so it’s crystal clear what’s at stake in this process.”

Mayor Weppler agreed and asked the county to provide more details and clarity on the final plan.

“I’m not sure now what the plan is, that is the initial plan and the final plan,” Weppelr said. “I would ask staff (to) prepare a final plan of what’s presented right now, so that we all know where we are, so that at some point if it’s approved down the road, everyone knows what was approved and there isn’t that discussion.”

Trustees also asked the county to keep all parties involved informed as the development moves forward.

“We’re all three separate teams and we need to be one team,” said Trustee Drew Cullum. “I think the county should be able to fill some major holes.”