Village of La Grange Plan Commission met Feb. 9

By Kristine Gonzales-Abella

Mar 17, 2022

Village of La Grange Plan Commission met Feb. 9.

Here are the minutes provided by the commission:

A regular meeting of the Plan Commission for the Village of La Grange was held at 7:30 p.m., on the second floor Auditorium Room of the Village Hall, 53 S. La Grange Road, La Grange, Illinois.

I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL OF THE PLAN COMMISSION

Chairman Paice called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.

Verify Quorum

Upon roll call the following were:

Present: Egan, Mosher, O’Connor, Wentink, Paice

Absent: Hoffenberg and Schwartz

Community Development Director Charity Jones, Village Planner Heather Valone, and Village Trustee Lou Gale were also present.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – JANUARY 12, 2021

Commissioner Wentink made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Egan to approve the minutes from January 12, 2021, as provided by staff this evening. A voice vote was taken:

Ayes: All

Nays: None

Motion passed

III. PUBLIC HEARINGS

A. PC CASE #259 - TEXT AMENDMENTS RELATING TO ARTICLES III THROUGH IX, XIV, AND XVI, OF THE LA GRANGE ZONING CODE PROPOSED BY VILLAGE STAFF (CONTINUED)

Chairman Paice said this public hearing is a continuation of last month. The Commission did go through most of the amendments but did want to get further information on mechanical equipment/ground mounted air conditioning units in residential districts. He asked staff to proceed with their presentation.

Heather Valone, Village Planner, stated she will start by going over the current requirements. Mechanical equipment is prohibited from being in any required yard except for the rear yard. She then showed on the overhead an example of a 50-foot lot. On the 50 foot lot you are to have a combined interior side yard of 12 feet, which has results of a 7 and a 5 foot side yard or a 6 and 6 foot side yard. Air conditioning units are not permitted in the interior, front, or corner side of the house unless there is additional space before you reach the required yard. She then showed an example on a 100 foot wide lot.

For corner lots, when there are two sides of the property that front streets, the shortest one is considered the front, and the longest one is considered the corner side yard. She then showed an example of a corner lot. The mechanical equipment could be located in the front of the house if it is not within the required front yard.

Commissioner Egan asked if it could be in the corner side yard.

Mrs. Valone said if there is an area outside the required 17 feet then yes it could be there. The code does require that it is screened from any street either by fencing or landscaping.

Chairman Paice asked if the screening applies to the interior side yard.

Mrs. Valone stated if it is close enough to the front of the home then staff has enforced that it does need to be screened. The screening requirement is still include in the proposed language.

Chairman Paice asked with the new proposal would it change the three-foot setback once past the garage.

Mrs. Valone staff has not run into the issue of where they are in the rear 30 feet of the lot. Most units are placed closer to the home and not on the opposite side of the garage. She then provided a few examples that have come before staff within the past four years. The way the amendment is drafted if an owner can prove that the a/c unit was there before 2005, regardless of the permit or not, then they can keep the unit in the location.

Commissioner O’Connor stated if you are a new homeowner you are not going to inherit that proof.

Mrs. Valone said staff has run across this issue with other noncompliant structures and homeowner and staff have used documentation from older housing listings, google street view, permit records, and even neighbors. Staff will search through their archives to see if they have anything. La Grange Park and Western Springs do have a grandfather clauses in their codes that they adopted on their enactment date which was back in 2011 and 2012. In the staff report, information was provided on a field survey. Staff surveyed about over 220 properties and approximately of the 14.8% of those homes may not comply. Some of these homes might comply but they could not determine this through a visual inspection. Staff presented data on housing tenure and based on the 2019 American Community Survey data from the Census Bureau, 26.5% of homeowners have lived in La Grange for more than 20 years and 73.5% have lived in La Grange for 20 years or less.

The code was originally adopted in 1991 with the current provisions in it. In 2007, changes were made to require the combined interior side yard of 12 feet. There is a possibility with that code change it could have generated some nonconformities. Currently, if your unit is not in compliance with the required yards you are required to move it as part of the permit. With the proposed amendment, they would allow anyone who installed an a/c unit, with or without a permit that is noncompliant would be legalized as of 2005. Additionally, it would wipe out any of the nonconformities that were generated in 2007 through the combined yard requirement. She asked if the Commission had any questions.

Chairman Paice asked as an example if they pass this if he had an air conditioner that he put in during 2003 which needs to be replaced and it is in the setback does he have to move it.

Mrs. Valone stated if he can provide proof that it was there before to 2005 then he would not have to move it.

Commissioner Egan asked if an affidavit can be proof that it was there prior to 2005.

Charity Jones, Community Development Director, said she is not aware of the Village accepting that previously. She would have to consult with the Village Attorney.

Commissioner Egan stated for corner lots the proposed ordinance states only in rear and interior side yards. It says nothing about allowing in the front or corner side if they are not within the setback.

Mrs. Jones said the section this language exists in, is in “Allowable Encroachments into Required Yard” section of the code versus just the yard in general. She did find the objection that Commission Egan had. It states, “The exception to allow the replacement of existing, only allows the replacement of existing if it is encroaching into the required rear and interior side yard”. It states nothing about encroaching into the required front yard or corner side yard. She understands it may not be clear, but she does believe it is saying if it does not meet the locational requirement it can be replaced.

Mrs. Valone stated it cannot be in the required yard, but if your house does not sit directly on those required yards it can be placed in that extra space before reaching the required yards.

Commissioner Egan said with some of the corner lots they have placed the unit in what the neighbors see as the front of the house with screening. She asked if that was preferred to move these units from what the public sees as the side of the home to the front of the house. She asked what effect will that 15 years backdate have for these properties that cannot prove it was there. She asked if anyone had applied for a variance for this.

Mrs. Jones said they have records for variances that go back to the 1960’s and nobody has applied for a variance.

Commissioner Wentink asked if the principle reason for nonconformance is the setback or the fact that it is on the wrong side of the house.

Mrs. Jones stated it is the proximity to the lot line.

Commissioner Egan asked if they could apply for a variance.

Mrs. Valone said they could apply for a variance.

Mrs. Jones stated the cost of moving the copper pipe might be less than the cost for applying for a variance.

Commissioner Mosher asked where did the cost numbers come from.

Mrs. Valone said there are several costs involved with a variation application that gets charged back to the applicant which they provide an escrow upfront. The applicant then pays the difference before they are issued a permit. The cost to move the equipment that is provided in the staff report was based on information that they were able to pull that was related to a/c units within the last four years. Staff was able to calculate an average from those. Also from consultation with an HVAC contractor.

Mrs. Jones stated as part of the permit process they are typically required to include a quote from the contractor. Many of the permit fees are based on the value of the construction.

Commissioner Mosher confirmed that they did not have a cost estimate for if someone moved the piping inside the home.

Mrs. Valone said they were not able to provide that information from permitting because they have never had anyone choose that option.

Commissioner Egan stated it feels a little burdensome for the people who have moved in within the last 20 years to now have to prove that their a/c unit was there well before they even heard of La Grange.

Chairman Paice said but approximately only 14.8% are non-conforming. Mrs. Jones stated out of that 14.8% some of those may have been before 2005. Commissioner Egan said she feels this will mostly affect corner lots.

Commissioner Mosher asked for the table that compares municipalities does all this discussion apply to generators as well.

Mrs. Valone stated Brookfield’s code is silent on generators. Western Springs has the same requirement for generators that is separate and so does Westchester. Generators have become popular recently so the Village has not run into this issue with generators as much as a/c units.

Chairman Paice asked if there were any further questions from the Commission for staff. None responded.

Plan Commission Discussion

Commissioner Wentink said the concern is whether 15 years is too much to have to provide proof. He questioned if there are so many people that have not been here for 20 years is 20 years then too much. His issue is when do you make people come into compliance and under what conditions.

Chairman Paice stated you do not want to make it harsh on the residents for something as simple as replacing an a/c unit. He would like to be as tolerant of the residents as possible.

Commissioner O’Connor said there are a lot of new people that have moved in and they do not know that they are not in compliance. By allowing that time frame it lets the people feel like they are being treated fairly.

Chairman Paice asked with the concern for corner lots is there a different language they should look at. Commissioner Egan stated reading it in the context of the code it makes much more sense. She agrees with the five feet on each side but does not agree with the date. She feels they should look to Western Springs and La Grange Park and how they made it effective as of the date of the ordinance.

Chairman Paice asked if all the Commissioners agreed that the amendment would be effective with the date of the ordinance.

All Commissioners agreed.

Chairman Paice then called for a motion for a recommendation.

Plan Commission Recommendation

Commissioner Egan made a motion, seconded by Commissioner O’Connor to recommend to the President and Board of Trustees approval of PC Case #259 – proposed text amendment 3-110G5(1) Mechanical Equipment with the proposed effective date as the date of the ordinance. A roll call vote was taken:

Ayes: Egan, O’Connor, Mosher, Wentink, Paice

Nays: None

Motion passed

IV. GENERAL DISCUSSION

None

V. PUBLIC COMMENTS

None

VI. ADJOURNMENT

Chairman Paice called for a motion to adjourn the meeting.

Commissioner Mosher made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Egan to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 p.m. A voice vote was taken:

Ayes: All

Nays: None