VILLAGE OF BARRINGTON HILLS

PLAN COMMISSION MEETING

July 11, 2005

 

The regular meeting of the Village of Barrington Hills Plan Commission was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Chairman Bosworth.

 

Village Clerk Elaine Ramesh swore in Lou Anne Majewski for another term as Plan Commissioner.

 

Plan Commission Members Present:      Kenneth Bosworth, Chairman

                                                            Peter Grande

                                                            Patrick Hennelly

                                                            Lou Anne Majewski

                                                            Joseph Messer

                                                            James O’Donnell

                                                            David M. Stieper

 

                                             Absent:    Thomas Roeser

                                                            Michael Schmechtig

 

The Attendance Sheet is attached and made part of these Minutes:

 

 

PREVIOUS MINUTES:  Commissioner Hennelly made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Stieper, to approve the June 13th Minutes.  Chairman Bosworth asked that the last sentence on Page 1 be changed to the following:  “In that respect, he would be proposing the formulation of a subcommittee whose goal would be to spearhead the task of rewriting the Comprehensive Plan with the help of professional land planners.  He noted that a new Village committee was being formed to meet with those individuals who have large parcels near or adjacent to Barrington Hills.”  Motion to approve the corrected Minutes carried unanimously by voice vote.

 

 

OTIS WOODS SUBDIVISION (MINOR) – FINAL PLAT:   Robert Best, attorney for the Paulus Investment Group, appeared before the Plan Commission seeking approval of the final plat for this two-lot subdivision located at 300 Otis Road.  The sketch plan for this proposal was approved by the Plan Commission at their May, 2005 meeting.

 

The parcel consists of 10+ acres, with an existing residence on Lot 2 whose access would be across a driveway easement along the west border of Lot 1 to Otis Road.    He said that a private access agreement had been submitted for consideration.  He pointed out that Otis Road is a County road and has been assured that Cook County is agreeable with the design and will sign the final plat.  Mr. Best then distributed copies of the plat that was overlaid on a aerial photo. 

 

With approval of the Village Engineer Dan Strahan, the width of the driveway easement has been reduced to 20 feet to accommodate the change of direction of the existing driveway.

 

Steve Albert, an engineer with Civil Design Group, Inc., reviewed the plat that had been prepared by Michael O’Connor.  He advised that Peder Finnberg of PAF & Associates verified that Lot 1 will support a septic system and described its soil as in the mid-range for percobility.

 

The stormwater pattern on Lot 2 drains into a depression with water draining into the ground rather than off site.  Drainage on Lot 1 goes toward the south and eventually southeast off site.

 

When questioned about the remainder of this parcel, Mr. Albert said that Van J. Paulus owns more land to the south, but had no plans to subdivide that yet.

 

Mr. Paulus had met with Emily McHugh, Vice President of the Riding Club, who verified that trails were located to the north of this parcel and then down Valley Road, but none on the parcel itself.

 

Mr. Albert said there were no outstanding engineering issues.

 

Chairman Bosworth pointed out that existing residences are usually not shown on plats, and asked that the one on Lot 2 be removed. Mr. Albert said he would have that correction made by the end of that week.

 

Motion:  Commissioner Hennelly made the motion, seconded by Commissioner O’Donnell, to recommend approval of the Otis Woods final plat pursuant to all items in the Village Engineer’s letter of July 7th to the Plan Commission Chairman being satisfactorily addressed, with the final plat deleting a existing building on Lot 2 and, at the suggestion of Special Counsel Gerald Callaghan, that the owner’s certificate reflect the fact that the parcel is owned by a partnership (Paulus Investment Group) rather than the individual name of Jan Paulus.  Motion approved unanimously by voice vote.

 

 

OTHER BUSINESS:   Chairman Bosworth advised that the Village Board had approved their recommendation to engage Teska Associates, Inc. to assist in updating the Comprehensive Plan.   

 

Lee Brown from Teska Associates distributed copies of a worksheet that he asked all the Commissioners to comment on so he could proceed with the evaluation phase of the revision. That form covered the following sections of the existing plan:  Ecology, Character, Services, Finances, and Overall Strategy.  He asked for the Commissioners’ comments regarding those topics’ continued relevance to the issues facing the Village, and any additional objectives for the Plan.  In order to prepare for the August presentation, Mr. Brown asked that the forms be faxed to him (847.869.2059) by July 25th.

 

Mr. Brown spoke of some of the issues he would be presenting for consideration, including the need for a good land use plan, the possibility of other uses on the periphery of the Village rather than just residential, and identification of the different types of roads throughout the Village.   He also emphasized that the most defensible zoning maps are the ones that implement the Comprehensive Plan. 

 

Special Counsel Gerald Callaghan believed the Commission should examine how the Comprehensive Plan fits into the zoning decisions and how the Village supports those decisions.  Also, they should be aware of standards for disconnection so they know what the Courts look at when considering such cases. 

 

Trustee Steven Knoop reminded the Commission of the Village Board’s decision to formulate a Development Commission to address large parcels with the goal to help in the planning of those potential developments. 

 

Other issues discussed by the Commission were the importance of intergovernmental agreements, the availability of empirical data for the Village’s viewpoints, ground water issues, and standards for rezoning.  Mr. Callaghan also thought that any discussion about land uses should include how best to serve those uses; i.e., water, roads, schools. 

 

Mary Bradford White representing the Barrington Hills Conservation Trust commented on the need to understand how best to conserve the characteristics of Barrington Hills.  Trust Knoop said that arrangements could be made to have a representative of the Trust appear before the Commission to present an overall view of its land use tools and designs.  He believed it may be appropriate to consider including some of those tools in the revised Comprehensive Plan.  It was agreed to have the presentation at the August meeting. 

 

 

TRUSTEE’S REPORT:  Trustee Knoop advised that the Board had approved the hiring of Teska Associates to assist in the Comprehensive Plan’s revision. 

 

President Abboud has been very proactive in working with McHenry County in coming up with an alternative plan for Barrington Farms. He would be furnishing the Commissioners with notes on his meeting.  Trustee Knoop asked that the Plan Commissioners communicate with Barrington Hills residents and the McHenry County Board.  Trustee Knoop discussed the location of the disconnection of the Iltorala property at Old Sutton Road and State Route 72.

 

The following actions taken by the Board of Trustees were enacted:  Ordinance 05.01 regarding the creation of an Equestrian Commission, Ordinance 05-02 Equestrian Ordinance whereby the Plan Commission may designate equestrian easements, and Resolution 05-15 stating that Barrington Hills is not obligated to submit a plan for affordable housing because it is a homerule community.

 

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9:20 p.m. after being so moved and seconded.

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

Lou Anne Majewski

Recording Secretary