Home Care In Willow Springs, IL

A consultant said the village's zoning for the high school's land was proper and consistent.

|Updated Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 7:33 am CT

WILLOW SPRINGS, IL – Willow Springs' handling of zoning for Lyons Township High School's land in the village has been proper and consistent, a land-use consultant said Tuesday.

At a town hall on the land, consultant John Houseal pointed to zoning regulations and long-term plans for development over three decades that he said showed consistency for the area in question.

The zoning for the 70 acres allows residential and light commercial uses, but not industrial, he said.

Given the allowed uses, Houseal said, the village is not impairing the value of the high school's property.

"I have not seen any evidence that the property is vacant because of zoning," he said. "The zoning accommodates a wide range of uses. If it only allowed one-acre single-family houses, you could make the case it should be loosened up."

Find out what's happening in Burr Ridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Houseal was hired to examine the land's zoning. This was in response to the high school's effort earlier this year to sell the site to an industrial developer, which neighbors and village officials opposed.

In January, the school's lawyer advised the board behind closed doors that Willow Springs would be "hard-pressed" to deny a zoning change. He said village trustees were likely fearful of litigation if they rejected industrial uses. (The board later ousted the lawyer.)

At the town hall, Burt Odelson, an attorney for the village, noted the possibility of litigation.

"If we were sued by a large industrial company and the school, it would be extremely expensive to defend by our small village," Odelson said.

After Houseal's presentation, Odelson said the consultant's report would serve as the village's defense of its zoning in court. He said the high school would be wasting taxpayers' money to sue Willow Springs.

School officials were present.

The board's vice president, Jill Grech, was among the speakers during public comments. She said the board wanted to make a decision on the land that positively impacts all students.

"It is our intent to work with all municipal partners as we consider the future use of the property based on shared needs and priorities of our school, students and community," Grech said, but she said nothing about the possibility of litigation.

When she concluded her speech, Grech was applauded, as were those who denounced school officials.

The land in question is next to Pleasantdale Elementary School, houses, parkland, a country club and a UPS facility.

The recordings of the high school board's closed meetings in January revealed members talking about how they kept the village and Pleasantdale School District 107 in the dark about its plans to sell to an industrial developer.

During public comments, Arlene Cabana, president of Pleasantdale's board, said the high school board's actions caused much "angst and trepidation" for residents. She said the school was 25 feet from the high school's land.

"Industry does not belong next to a school," she said.

She said the health and safety of students and the community trumps any financial duty that she said the high school claims to have.

The Village Hall's meeting room was filled with a standing-room-only crowd, which spilled out into the hallway.

The first couple of rows were reserved for officials from nearby towns and public bodies that supported Willow Springs in its battle with the high school.

The officials were from Countryside, Indian Head Park, Burr Ridge, McCook, Lyons Township and Pleasant Dale Park District.

High school officials, including Superintendent Brian Waterman, did not sit in the reserved section, but were among those standing in the hallway. Waterman watched as a number of speakers denounced his effort to sell to an industrial developer.

Last year, Village President Melissa Neddermeyer called for Waterman's firing.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

A consultant plans to present a study on the "highest and best use" of the school's land.

|Updated Mon, Nov 20, 2023 at 10:49 am CT

WILLOW SPRINGS, IL – Willow Springs plans a town hall next week on Lyons Township High School's wooded land, which has been the subject of much controversy over the last year.

The high school bought the 70 acres more than six decades ago for a third campus. But enrollment stabilized, so school officials see no need for a new school.

The town hall is set for 7 p.m. Nov. 28 at Willow Springs Village Hall, 1 Village Circle.

In the face of opposition, the high school tried to sell the land to an industrial developer earlier this year, but dropped the plan shortly before the school board election.

The land is zoned for residential and small retailers, while industrial uses are banned.

Find out what's happening in La Grangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In recent months, the village hired Houseal Lavigne Associates to research the "highest and best use" of the land.

The village has sent out a mailer to residents about the town hall, in which residents can speak after the presentation. High school officials have been invited.

In January, the high school board broke the law and discussed the land deal behind closed doors.

After receiving a complaint, the attorney general ordered the board to release the recordings.

It turned out the board was strategizing to keep both the village and Pleasantdale School District 107, which has a school next to the land, out of the loop on its plans for the property.

During the closed meetings, a board member said industrial operations would hurt neighbors, prompting others to agree.

Also, Ares Dalianis, a lawyer from the school's law firm, Franczek, told the board its chances at getting a zoning change were "pretty good," although village officials said they would stick to the regulations.

Dalianis never told the board during the closed meetings that it should discuss the land in public, as state law requires.

A couple of months after the attorney general's order, the high school board changed its law firm.

In the last few months, the school board has taken a wait-and-see approach while Houseal Lavigne does its work.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

A year ago, they were keeping village officials out of the loop on plans for the school's land.

|Updated Fri, Nov 24, 2023 at 11:46 am CT

LA GRANGE, IL – Lyons Township High School officials plan to attend a Willow Springs town hall next week focused on the high school's land in the village.

At a school board meeting this week, Superintendent Brian Waterman announced that he, business official Brian Stachacz, the school's lawyer and board Vice President Jill Grech plan to attend the town hall.

The village's consultant plans to present the findings of a study on the "highest and best use" of the school's 70 acres.

Earlier this year, the school tried selling the land to an industrial developer, even though the village banned industrial uses for the area in question.

Recordings of closed meetings revealed board members strategizing to keep the village of Willow Springs out of the loop for as long as possible.

Find out what's happening in La Grangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

After the controversy erupted, village officials objected to the high school's handling of the matter, with Village President Melissa Neddermeyer calling for Waterman's ouster.

In March, the high school abandoned the effort, a few weeks before the school board election.

Apparent tensions linger between the village and the high school. As recently as September, school board members publicly debated whether Waterman should even send an email updating the village on the school's approach to the land.

Waterman and other officials have attended Willow Springs meetings before about the land.

The town hall is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday at Willow Springs Village Hall, 1 Village Circle.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from La Grange

The suspicions of a lawsuit have some basis, as closed-session recordings show.

|Updated Wed, Dec 6, 2023 at 10:08 am CT

LA GRANGE, IL – A top Lyons Township High School official said this week she wanted to clarify the school's position on selling its land in Willow Springs, which sparked an outcry earlier this year.

At a school board meeting, Dawn Aubert, the board's president, spoke about last week's meeting at Willow Springs Village Hall.

A village consultant said Willow Springs' zoning for the high school's 70 acres was proper and consistent over the last three decades.

The property is zoned for residential and light commercial uses, not industrial. The school board, however, tried to sell to an industrial developer earlier this year, keeping the village and a nearby elementary school in the dark for months.

At last week's meeting, residents and the village's attorney raised the possibility of the high school and a developer suing the village over the zoning. Residents also worried the school had not abandoned its effort to sell to an industrial developer.

Find out what's happening in La Grangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Aubert acknowledged those concerns in a prepared statement at the school board meeting

"I would like to clarify that the board is not actively engaged in the sale of the property and that there are no potential buyers for the property and there is no pending litigation with respect to the district-owned property," Aubert said.

At the same time, she said, the board remains committed to using the land as an asset toward achieving its goal of upgrading the school's two campuses, referring to the money generated from a sale.

"Any future board of education discussions will be publicly posted per our normal procedures," she said.

Those normal procedures apparently weren't followed in January when the board held two closed meetings about the Willow Springs land. No notice was given.

Later, the attorney general's office found the board broke the law by discussing a land deal behind closed doors. The agency ordered the board to release the recordings, which the board did.

Those recordings gave some basis to the suspicion that the high school or a developer may sue the village.

In the closed sessions, the board's lawyer, Ares Dalianis of the Franczek law firm, suggested a lawsuit may be filed.

In his comments, Dalianis referred to the highest bidder, Bridge Industrial, which the school had privately courted for the better part of a year. He then imagined what he would be thinking if he were a Willow Springs official.

"I'm a trustee for Willow Springs," Dalianis said. "I'm like holy cow, these guys have nailed every one of the standards. They met the requirements to change (the zoning). They have the right expert here. I really don't have a choice but to vote yes or if I vote no, it's going to be the subject of litigation, and Bridge is going to file a lawsuit saying they didn't get fair treatment through the process."

A few months after the attorney general's order, the board replaced Dalianis' law firm.

Willow Springs officials have vowed they would stick to their zoning.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

PALOS HILLS, IL — A popular horse stable and pony party venue on Kean Avenue has been put on notice by the Forest Preserves of Cook County to accept an offer to use a forest preserve-owned driveway or lose access, which could potentially put the stable out of business, the owner claims.

Sarah Halladay, 53, the owner of Sarah’s Stables and Ponies at 8220 and 8236 S. Kean Ave., Willow Springs, said she was given ten days notice earlier this month to agree to a proposal to pay a permit fee for the forest preserve-owned driveway that runs down the middle of her one-acre property. What she doesn't agree to is the county's purchase option to buy her property at a future date.

On the north side sits her barn and stable, on the south side, a former biker bar with a gravel parking lot, which Halladay purchased that is now used as a party room for children’s pony parties.

“What we have here is something wonderful for the community,” Halladay told Patch. “Police officers come here to de-stress. We have children and young adults with special needs in therapy programs. People come here in tears and leave with a smile after petting the animals. We bring people to the forest preserve.”

The forest preserve-owned driveway, Halladay claims, has been used as a public parking lot for decades. Losing the driveway would shut off parking access for guests who are disabled or have special needs.

“We’ll have absolutely no parking,” she said. “Therapy programs and family parties will have to park on the side of the road and cross the street.”

The Forest Preserves of Cook County has offered to lease the driveway to Sarah’s Stables for an annual permit fee of $10,000 for the next four years, with an option to renew the lease for ten years or more. The agreement also gives the forest preserve the option to buy the property prior to any sale, based on three independent appraisals (which Halladay says she would have to pay for), minus $130,000 for the last 13 years of “unauthorized use.”

“The offer allows Ms. Halladay to continue to maintain her business while fairly compensating the taxpayers of Cook County for use of public land for her company’s benefit,” forest preserve spokesperson Carl Vogel said in an email. “It does not require her to sell Sarah’s Stables now, nor ask her to give us a counteroffer of what the property is worth.”

Vogel added that nobody associated with Sarah’s Stables has “reached out in any way to clarify or discuss the offer, or even acknowledge receipt of the forest preserves’ Dec. 13 email.” He called the proposal to Halladay a “compromise,” and a departure from the forest preserve’s usual cease-and-desist orders to private property owners encroaching on public land.

“The forest preserves has no plans for a meeting and/or hearing to further discuss this issue," Vogel stated.

According to 2021 property tax records on the Cook County Treasurer website, the estimated combined value of both parcels was $541,190.

Halladay said her 2023 assessment nearly doubled the estimated value of her land at $1.1 million, even after she demolished part of her barn in an attempt to reduce the assessment. Property owners are required to pay 10 percent of the assessed value. In past years she paid around $50,000.

“I will have to pay $110,000. I can’t afford that,” Halladay said. “No barn can. As soon as I sign the agreement, then the lease price will go up along with the property tax, and then I’ll be forced to sell.”

Halladay said she’s willing to enter a permit agreement, even offering to pay ten years in advance, but not the option for the forest preserves to buy her land. Her attorney is making a counter offer on Wednesday, the final day to respond.

“You can’t buy what I have to offer. [The forest preserve] can buy my property anytime they want," she added.

For the past decade, the Forest Preserves of Cook County has been cracking down on property owners across Cook County who’ve encroached on public lands for private use, such as installing sheds and swing sets, planting gardens, or enlarging back yards into natural ecosystems. This includes using the land between 8220 and 8236 S. Kean Ave. for customer parking for the horse stables.

“They said I have an unofficial trail behind my barn,” Halladay said. “Up until three months ago my barn was on all the maps. The trail has been there for over 100 years.”

If there is “encroachment” it is from cyclists and hikers parking their vehicles in the forest preserve-owned driveway to access the trailhead behind her property to enter the forest preserve, Halladay said.

This isn’t Halladay’s first go-around with the Forest Preserves of Cook County, whom she alleges has threatened her with eminent domain in the past. In addition to pony parties, Sarah’s Stables boards horses and offers trail rides and a petting zoo. Many of the animals she keeps – goats, sheep, ducks, Alpaca llamas and ponies – are rescue animals that she’s pulled from kill pens or saved from neglect and abusive situations.

“Most are little rescue animals,” she said. “We’ve turned them around through therapy and rehabilitation.”

Over the years, Sarah’s Stables has become a haven for children, teens and adults who are wheelchair-bound or have special needs. A certified therapist from Healing Hearts Animal Assisted Therapy runs a therapy program out of Sarah’s Stables.

“I don’t charge for that,” Halladay said.

Karyn Richter credits Sarah’s Stables, where she board-shares a horse, with allowing her to bond for the first time with her son, Michael, 37, who has autism. Her son has befriended one of Halladay’s horses, Titan, who she said has transformed her son’s life.

“If [Halladay] shuts down her horses go with her,” said Richter, who added a video clip to a Change.org petition to save Sarah’s Stables. “It's not just the emotion that Mike has from his horse, we are a family there. I don’t have to worry about people being mean to him. If Titan gets taken away, it would be devastating for him.”

Meanwhile, the area’s equestrian community has rallied to support Halladay, creating a Facebook group – Save Sarah’s Stables – and starting a petition, gathering over 1,000 signatures online and on paper. Her supporters call the forest preserve’s alleged attempt to force Halladay out “a slap in the face to the equine community.”

“I’m not going to fold like the other stables,” Halladay vowed. “I’m going to stand my ground. Everything we do here is good.”