Will County Gazette

Village of Homer Glen Plan Commission met June 5.

Here are the minutes provided by the commission:

1. Call to Order.

The Meeting was called to Order at 7:03 PM

2. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was led by Commissioner Lyons. Swearing in of

3.Rob Marshall and Marwan Mesaf were sworn in as Commissioners.

4 John Hand was sworn in as Chair.

5. Lynn McGary was sworn in as Vice-Chair.

6. Roll Call.

Members present: Commissioner Stanly, Commissioner Lyons, Commissioner Mesaf, Commissioner Marshall, Vice-Chair McGary and Chairman Hand. Also present were Director Gruba, Planner Udarbe, and Plan Commission Secretary Cassin.

Not present: Commissioner Foley

7. A motion was made by Commissioner McGary, seconded by Commissioner Stanly, to move agenda item (d) to (b) so it would be the second case on the agenda, and them move item (b) to (c) so that the former second item would become the third item on the agenda, and finally former item (c) was moved to become item (d). Commissioners McGary, Stanly, Lyons, Mesaf, Marshall and Hand voted in favor, zero were opposed. The motion carried with a six (6) to zero (0) vote.

8. A motion to approve the agenda as amended was made by Commissioner McGary, seconded by Commissioner Lyons. A roll call vote was taken with Commissioners McGary, Lyons, Marshall, Mesaf, Stanly and Hand all voting in favor, zero (0) opposed. The motion carried with a six (6) to zero (0) vote.

9. Minutes.

a) May 15, 2025 Plan Commission

A motion was made to approve the minutes from April 17, 2025 by Commissioner Stanly, seconded by Commissioner Lyons. All in favor, zero (0) opposed. The motion carried.

8. Public Comment. None.

The Plan Commission Secretary swore in all wishing to speak. Vice-Chair McGary provided a statement as to the order and operation of business for the Plan Commission process.

9. New Business and Possible Action.

a) Case No. HG-2513-V, 15357 W Thornwood Ln (Public Hearing): Consider a request for approval of [1] a Variance to reduce the required side yard setback for a detached accessory structure greater the 750 square feet from twenty (20) feet to ten (10) feet and [2] a Variance to permit five (5) garage bays facing a public right-of-way where only three (3) are permitted for certain real property located in the R-2 Single- Family Residential District at 15357 W Thornwood Lane, Homer Glen, IL.

Plan Taylor presented the background of the case. The applicant is proposing to construct a detarched garage in the side yard next to the attached garage. There has not been any public comment. The side yard setback request is for 10 ft when the required for this zone is 20 feet. There isn't any easement that they are encroaching into. The proposed will have 2 additional garage doors on top of the 3 bays on the attached garage. They are well within the lot coverage allowance. It is a prefab structure with metal siding. They will maintain 10 feet from the side property line. If the roof overhang is within 3 feet of the property line, they will need to fire rate the structre. The building department reviewed and was OK with the placement of the structure. The materials will need to match the principle structure. Because this home is 100% masonry on the first floor, there will not be a masonry requirement for this structure. They will need a variance from the Village Board to allow the steel siding however. The applicant will be changing the color of their home to match the exterior color of the accessory structure being proposed. There are topography issues in the rear of the yard making it not condusive to constructing in the rear. This concludes her presentation,

A motion was made to open the public hearing by Commissioner Stanly, that was seconded by Commissioner Lyons, all were in favor, zero (0) opposed.

The applicant approached to explain that the old shed in the back is going to be removed, which was the impetus for this project to construct this new accessory structure.

No public comment.

Motion made to close the public hearing by Commissioner McGary, seconded by Commissioner Marshall. All were in favor, zero (0) opposed. The public hearing was closed.

Commissioner Marshall asked the applicant about roof material construction, which will be steel. The front of the structure will be flush with the primary structure.

Commissioner Lyons confirmed it will be a single door that is wide for 2 vehicles. Their plan is to match the accessory structure and home, and all of the doors will match. They are going to make a new color scheme on the home.

Commissioner Stanly asked if there will be windows as the current design is plain. The homeowner stated he would be wiling to add windows.

The applicant added this is actually a more convenient location in favor of his neighbors on the East side, but it's also the flattest spot.

The Committee discussed adding windows to the motion prior to reading, and suggest 3 windows on the East side. The applicant was agreeable.

b) Case No. HG-2426-SP, 17535 S. Parker Road (Public Hearing): Consider a request for approval of a special use permit for a large group home (7-12 residents) for certain real property located in the A-1 Agricultural district at 17535 S. Parker Road, Homer Glen, Illinois.

Director Gruba state this was before the board before and the Village Attorney was present at that time. It was Chris understanding that the .... Listen to the recording...... this would be a future zoning code update. It could be considered assisted living, but we are talking about a large group home tonight. There are a total of 7000+ square feet in this home.

There was some public comment with concern about a barking dog, emergency vehicles coming at all hours, other vehicle traffic, garbage storage.

The applicant will need to present a license from the State of Illinois, which Staff has not received to date,

The applicant will provide proof of compliance with the WillCounty Health department, which staff has not received to date. (there is concern that there isn't compliance with the septic area)

The applcaint shall provide a copy of insurance as rquired to carry, nothing has been received to date.

Staff completed a timeline of events from ....

Staff shall confirm that the floor plan provided was accurate. The plan that was provided did not illustrate any basement windows or an elevator. ... listen to recording...

Staff shall do a site inspection and this happened on May 2, 2025.... Listen to recording.....

An elevator was installed and it does go down to the basement. Director Gruba provide photos of their inspection.

Basement windows will need to be larger for anyone that will be in that room per building code.

Chris stated the plan commission has full authority to approve or deny a project like this. He concluded his report.

Motion to open the public hearing..

The petitioner approached to provide documentation from public health. She stated she renewed her license but was unable to print the license. Chairman Hand stated that she has several items that still need to be submitted. She is aware that she is missing the documents, they are completed, but she cannot print them. Her attorney could not get them for her. She said her lawyer spoke to Will County and regarding insurance, she stated she provided the documentation to the Zoning department, and Directory Gruba stated again nothing has been received. Chairman Hand asked why she was unable to bring in the requested documents over the past 30 days, and she said she couldn't get anything without her license. Chairman Hand stated that there was a lack of communication on her part. He told her that she should have turned that in to the zoning department 2 weeks ago.

Public comment from Beth Verdun - she addressed the special use permit, and stated the laws for developmental disabilities and communication act, which does not house aging seniors (listen to the recording) she quoted the Village Code as well. She said that the ROMA house website does list that the home is a senior car facility. listen......it is a private for profit business, shielding themselves under the.... Care act....it is a misrepresentation and a misuse of zoning protections. It would set a dangerous precendent for Homer Glen villages.

Theordore Verdun spoke, he addressed this request for a special use permit needs to be evaluated under intense review to see it's alignment with current village code. This doesn't fit the neighborhood character. No public gain has been shown. The applicant misclassifies their use. It disturpst the zoning stability. ..... falls short of the special use standard. This proposal does not merit approval. He is urging a cease and desist order as the applicant has shown willfull incompliance. Roma is not a home based business, roma is not a group home.

Motion to close the public hearin

Commissioner McGary said she would start a discussion, but she felt she would reiterate what Mr. Verdun stated. She said she cannot in any good conscience approve this. Commissioner Stanly stated in looking at the pictures, it doesn't seem safe to wheel people with the current grading. He cannot see doing this. Commissioner Hand stated that the basement photos shows that the bedrooms are being used when the commission was told that they were not being used as bedrooms. He has concern that the windows that were shown in the photos, could potentially be under the deck and that would not suffice at all. Commission Lyons asked if any cititations were issued. There were not any further citations, per staff. Comissioner Marshall clarified that her license expired in Feb and she didn't apply for it until May. Commissioner Hand stated that there was a lack of paperwork and communication. The only communication was aksing for the date of the meeting, per staff. NO other questions by commissioners.

... Go through recording on finding of facts. and committee response to each of the (10)......

c) Case No. HG-2511-V, 14624 W. 136th Street (CONTINUED Public Hearing): Consider a request for approval of [1] a Variance to permit an accessory structure in the front yard where accessory structures are not a permitted obstruction and [2] a Variance to reduce the required side yard setback for a detached accessory structure greater than 750 square feet from twenty-five (25) feet to fifteen (15) feet for certain real property located in the R-1 Single-Family Residential District at 14624 W. 136th Street, Lemont, Illinois (within Homer Glen Corporate limits).

Planner Udarbe presented the background on the case. The applicant lives at the subject property, and is intending to install a large accessory structure and covered patio. The property is a double frontage lot, also called a thru lot. There used to be a driveway access on 136th street that was stopped during the 1990's. The public hearing was continued and has been open, so that the applicant can present meeting the zoning requests and code violations.

The zoning request for the front yard accessory structure which our zoning code doesn't permit. However, this is a thru lot and per our code, there isn't a designated front yard. This could be allowed as long as the setbacks are met. There will not be a rear yard, they are all front yards, per code, and so a variance is needed to put this structure there, even though their property is concisdered to be all front yards because it is a thru yard.

Planner Udarbe went through all of the public comment comments that were receied prior to the last hearing, and then added the public testimony that was brought forward at the last plan commission meeting. She brought the new commissioners up to speed with the code enforcement history as well.

Public hearing already opened. Petitioner came forward to add that she left the meeting concerned. Now hearing how the other cases tonight were very code oriented, she feels that the case is very personal. She said that there was a comment about them not being good neighbors, and she said that her neighbors are not being good neighbors. She explained about issues with neighbors, and said that she did some research on her neighbor. She said that this same neighbor also stopped another neighbor of doing repairs on his garage, and so he waited until it collapsed and then reconstructed. She added they are looking to improve their home. She added that a Cook County stated that there were 14 beds in the home when Cook County never entered the home, on what basis would they say this. She said that people have been trespassing and they have installed cameras to document everything. She discussed the particulars of the things they needed to meet, and Taylor did confirm that Casey the Code Enforcement Officer did state that there were improvements, but ultimately it is up to the Plan Commission.

Public Comment - Margaret Zupta. She drives past this home every day. She said this is not personal. She said that the comments about her neighbor are inaccurate. She wasn't present at the previous hearing, but she knows that Taylor read her letter to the Commission. She said there are 7- vehifcles in the driveway during the week and then 8- (LISTEN TO RECORDING) on the weekends. She stated she cannot always get to her home because of the vehciels. This has been going on for 5 years. She said that everyresident should be able to beutify their property. She said that they did move some of the wood, they have cut the grass and today there were 7 vehifles in the driveway as she was coming to the meeting. She said nobody is saying they live like pigs. She said that people can keep their property as to how they see fit. But she said when it becomes a nuisance, they then need to do something. She would like the Commissioners to give this serious consideration, and that the violations that are outstanding are still enforced.

Motion to close th epuble hearing

Commissioner Lyons asked if there was a permit application for the driveway. Staff stated that it was their intent to do the driveway in between these meetings, but staff stated they wanted to focus on getting the violations handled first. There was an application in 2020 for a driveway, that didn't get completed and that permit has expired. Commissioner Stanly stated that he wanted to apologize to the applicant, that ComEd Pole does actually belong to ComEd. He was wrong. He said he went by the house today, said it looks better, the vehicle is moved. He asked if they would consider adding a bay to that garage, since she asked about sticking to code, and code would allow for her to fix up what they have and add a bay. The applicant stated that the current conditions of the existing one are bad. Commissioner Stanly suggested tear it down and repice right there. Staff stated that it would not meet setbacks and it's not on a concrete floor. The applicant added that the only owners of the vehicles are for people that live in that home, with the exception of the caregivers that come to visit the grandma. She added that there werwe more cars when they had roof being worked on but that was for a couple of days. Residents in the audience stated she was lying, reminded her that she took an oath to tell the truth and walked out in frustration. She clarified that her family did work on the roof, with some workers. The applicant stated the roof was permitted. The roof is complete, just need downspouts and soffit. The applicant would construct the garage together, they live in this house. They would do the work on the weekends. They family owned concrete business that they run out of the home. The work off of the dining room table. The equipment for this business is big, because it is a concrete business. Commissioner Marshall asked if the garage door is commercial height? He said it is a 9' tall door, not commercial. He asked why one section is bumped out area, and the applicant said it is for storing vehicles and nothing like excavators, they are too big for that space anyway. She said they are not looking to add more driveway to store more vehicles. They only want the fireplace is for the covered porch, the garage will not be temperature controlled. The reason they wanted the fireplace was for the grandma, she likes to enjoy the fire. The applicant stated he would not have an issue to remove the covered porch and fireplace area. He plans to match the garage to the home, but he plans to update the façade of the home. The proposed structure and the home combined meet the lot coverage, per staff. Commissioner Hand stated he thinks it is a nice looking structure and felt it could use some windows. He said that they are replacing what appears to be a barn. As far as the variances, the doube front yard is a variance. Just looking for a 10 foot difference on the setbacks. There are currently no vehicles parked in the old existing structure. The commission appreciates the family working with the Village on the violations. The family will put something under to lift the wood when it stops raining. Commissioner Hand stated ahead of any permit requests and approvals, all of the code violations will need to be met. He appreciates they are trying to improve their home.

d) Case No. HG-2410-FP, 14509 S. Hillcrest Rd - Skik Subdivision (Public Meeting):

Consider a request for approval of a Final Plat of Subdivision for a 2-lot subdivision. Director Gruba stated this was approved nearly 10 years ago, but since the subdivision wasn't recorded within 90 days, they need to come back. The zoning request was effective immediately. WE have 2 different zoning districts as a result of the plat not being recorded. Staff wanted to bring this back, even though it is unusual, because the plat has expired. Nothing else has changed on this project. There is no need to open a public hearing, this is just a public meeting.

No discussion by the Commissioners.

10. Other Business.

None.

11. Reports of Plan Commissioners and Staff.

Gruba - training set for June 19th, all will be present. He is excited about the training. The new hire has been chosen, Dana Kahn. Chase Bank workshop coming up. No application from Dunkin yet for rhe 151st relocation. Dunn Farm had a meeting with the applicants, there will be another workshop for that project. With Hidden Valley, they are still working with them on that, awaiting the final plat.

Commissioner McGary asked what was different with Dunn Farm, single family lots were deeper which could remove some trees, there were less 4 unit structures, but not all were removed, they will provide more building material information. The Commission didn't understand the point of making the lot deeper, it is taking away from open space.

Taylor said that July 3rd meeting will have an oversized an accessory structure, and a request for an agricultural setback variance.

The builder for Dunn Farm has not yet been determined. It may or may not be Jamie Corso.

The Commissioners requested a hard copy of the Annual Plan Report.

12. Adjournment.

A motion was made to adjourn by Commissioner Komperda, seconded by Commissioner Lyons. All in favor, zero (0) opposed and the meeting was adjourned at 8:14 PM.

http://www.homerglenil.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05152025-2933