Will County Board Upholds Zoning Denials, Rejecting Developer Appeals

The Will County Board on Wednesday backed its Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC), denying two separate appeals from property owners who sought to overturn the commission’s recommendations against their projects. Both appeals failed to secure the 17-vote supermajority required by county ordinance to override a PZC decision.

The first case involved a request by Hernando Torres to build a barn of over 5,000 square feet on his property on State Line Road in Crete Township, far exceeding the 1,000 square feet normally allowed. The board voted 15-5 in favor of overturning the PZC’s denial, but the motion failed as it fell two votes short of the supermajority threshold.

Supporters, like Member Daniel Butler, argued the barn was necessary to store a year’s worth of hay and house animals, and was smaller than other barns in the vicinity that had received variances. “He still has a garage which is 800 [square feet], so they count that against it,” Butler explained. “But the barn itself is not really that big for that property.”

However, Member Julie Berkowicz questioned the significant size variance. “The maximum size is over a thousand, but the barn that they want to build is over 5,000 square feet. So that’s quite a change in the variance,” she noted.

In the second case, the board considered an appeal from Peter Krzyzanowski, who sought a variance to build a new home just three feet from his property line on Dell Park Avenue in Lockport Township. The standard setback is 10 feet. This appeal also failed, receiving 16 votes in favor—one shy of the required 17.

Member David Oxley, who represents the district, supported the applicant, noting the property was a narrow 40-foot lot created decades ago. “The way he’s situating it on the lot, it would not prove any hardship on the neighbors. There’s plenty of room between the houses,” Oxley said.

Concerns were raised about the proximity to the neighboring property. “I think that 3 feet is not enough room if those meters wind up having to be placed on that wall,” Berkowicz commented.

The two failed appeals underscore the significant hurdle developers face in convincing the full County Board to reverse a negative recommendation from its appointed zoning commission.