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4 | July 21, 2016 | The New Lenox Patriot news newlenoxpatriot.com New Lenox Village Board Trustees approve Silver Cross land rezoning Meredith Dobes, Editor A handful of residents of New Lenox’s Spring Creek- Edge Creek subdivision were in attendance at the New Lenox Village Board’s July 11 meeting to voice concerns about rezoning of property adjacent to their neighborhood and to Silver Cross Hospital. The residents mainly spoke of concerns the possibilities the requested H, or hospital, district zoning would allow the landowner — Silver Cross — to have when developing the land. After some discussion with the residents, the Village Board unanimously voted to rezone the land in question to H. A tentatively proposed plan for one section of the 58 acres of property along the west side of Silver Cross Boulevard, south of U.S. Route 6, is an outpatient surgical center, as discussed at a previous Village Board meeting. However, the hospital would need to submit full site plans for a final plat approval before building anything on the land, per Village Code. Resident Susanne Picchi asked the board at the meeting whether the residents who live near the hospital would be involved in talks with Silver Cross about the development of the land in the future. Trustee Dave Smith said he presented that idea at the last board meeting because he thought Silver Cross would be willing to work with the residents and hear their concerns. Picchi said she is concerned that the hospital could possibly build a 13-story building or four- or fivestory office building on the land under the H zoning and wanted to know more about what would be built there. Mayor Tim Baldermann said that other than the possibility of the surgery center, Silver Cross has not officially discussed other plans for the land. Steve Dana, another resident, said the broadness of the H zoning classification is concerning, and he wants to see the Village work on a transitional H zoning system. “It strikes one to see we have H and nothing underneath H as a subclassification,” he said. “There clearly needs to be. We have it with commercial; we should really have the same principal with H.” Round it up A brief recap of Village Board action July 11 • Mayor Tim Baldermann announced that Karl Kurtz, founder and owner of Kurtz Memorial Chapels, Kurtz Ambulance Service and Goodale Memorial Chapel, died and extended his condolences to the family. • Village Engineer Will Nash announced updated dates for Metra crossing closures. Work on the Gougar Road crossing, just north of U.S. Route 30, was rescheduled to 6 a.m. July 20-6 p.m. July 29. Another crossing closure was added at Francis Road, between Parker and Marley roads, for 6 a.m. Sept. 21-6 p.m. Sept. 30. Signs and detour routes will be posted, he said. Public hearing for Wastewater Treatment Plant No. 2 loan approval The Village Board also held a public hearing at its July 11 meeting to hear comments on the environmental impacts of the Wastewater Treatment Plant No. 2 expansion project. According to a memo to the board from Public Works Director Brian Williams, part of the procedures for the Water Pollution Control Loan Program requires the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to assess the environmental impacts of the project. The expansion project involves using land to the west of and adjacent to the current plant, and is to include automatic bar screens, five new aeration tanks, one new final clarifier, two disc filters, ultraviolet disinfection, two new aerobic digesters, sludge thickening, sludge storage and high-efficiency blowers. Resident Bill Walter was the only person present to speak at the hearing, and he asked Williams about the plant’s capacity after expansion and whether the Village would need to hire more personnel for the project. Williams said the expansion would increase the flow capacity of the plant to 1.5 million gallons per day from approximately 750,000 gallons per day, and the Village would not need any more personnel. For comparison, the Village’s Wastewater Treatment Plant No. 1 can handle 2.56 million gallons per day, he said. The justification for the project stated that New Lenox is expected to grow from its current population of 26,520 to 54,026 by 2036, and additional capacity is needed to accommodate the larger population. It also said the Village needs to complete the update to meet phosphorus removal, disinfection and post aeration requirements. The project is estimated to start in December and be completed in June 2018, and cost $19,718,500. The Village is to pay for the project through the aforementioned Water Pollution Control Loan Program, and the loan would be repaid through rate increases from 3-8 percent annually through 2021.
newlenoxpatriot.com news the New Lenox Patriot | July 21, 2016 | 5 New Lenox Township Board Township secures agreement with Will County for electronic recycling disposal Megann Horstead Freelance Reporter The New Lenox Township Board of Trustees announced a new electronic recycling program will begin Wednesday, July 27, at its Thursday, July 14 meeting. Officials unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement with Will County that will allow for disposal of electronics between 5-7 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of every month at the Township Offices, 1100 S. Cedar Road. Will County Board Member Ray Tuminello, representing District 12 — which includes New Lenox and Mokena — told the board that getting the program back on track for residents is the ultimate goal. “The County is dedicated to do anything we need to do to ensure that there’s a smooth transition, so we can get some kind of recycling program back online,” he said. “We understand where a product goes if we didn’t come up with something.” In recent months, Township officials started working with the County to secure an intergovernmental agreement that would introduce a new program for disposal of electronics. The former site of the New Lenox electronic recycling center closed in February, much like several other facilities located in Will County. State law mandates that putting electronic waste in landfills is illegal. Tuminello noted that TV manufacturers are withholding the monies that otherwise would help residents to properly dispose of their electronic purchases. He said this loophole must be closed. “Our entire hope really is to go through our legislative committee at the County, which I currently sit on, and one of the things we are going to be pushing downstate is for some of that funding to come back to the local municipalities and the local townships,” Tuminello said. The initial agreement called for pick-up on the second and fourth Thursdays of every month, but officials noted how the program coincided with the schedule for the Township Board of Trustees meeting. That is no longer the case. “We wanted to flip that,” Township Supervisor Michael Hickey said. “The best fit for the other township that’s doing [electronic recycling] is doing it the first and third Wednesday. We will be doing [collection] the second and fourth Wednesday.” Hickey said the program will run independent of the Township, even as collection is hosted on-site. Will County is contracting with a new vendor, Electronic Recyclers International. As part of the new agreement, the vendor will handle all sorting, packaging and loading of electronics. As for cost, the service is free to residents. The staging of the recycling event is still in the works, Hickey said. Officials will iron out those details in the weeks to come and adjust as needed. If all pans out according to plan, Trustee Martin Boban said the recycling drop-off program will be staged so that cars run west of Cedar Road from Otto Drive toward West Illinois Highway. The hope, according to Boban, is that residents will be patient when the program first launches, so as to ease the transition. In a related development, the Township parking lot was recently repaved. Officials said the hope is that the completion of that project allows for the electronic recycling program to see a smooth transition when it begins later this month. Rent for senior housing center in New Lenox Township on the rise Those living in New Lenox Township’s senior housing center will find a new rate for rent in September. The proposed rents at the Guy A. Sell Senior Housing Center will increase by 2 percent for both single and twobedroom apartments, upon extension of the lease. That will cost residents living in singlebedroom units $763, while others living in two-bedroom units will pay $895. “Our hands are pretty much tied,” Hickey said. “The noncallable bonds are set. The monies that we have is set aside for bonds payment. We can sit there, make 1 percent, and our responsibility is 5.5 [percent].” In 2015, rents for single and two-bedroom apartments amounted to $748 and $878, respectively. In 2014, tenants paid $732 for a single and $860 for a two-bedroom apartment. Hickey said in previous years, board action resulted in a rate freeze for tenants in senior housing, and the Township has also been able to keep rent increases to fewer than 2 percent. “We’ve tried to be as reasonable as we could, but we have to keep moving it up because of our bond obligation,” he said. Hickey said the board’s unanimous decision to move forward with the rent increase allows taxpayers to save money. Missing out on life because of your weight? Bariatric surgery provides a solution. The AMITA Health Center for Metabolic & Bariatric Procedures, Bolingbrook can help. We offer high quality and compassionate care provided by experienced bariatric surgeons supported by a skilled team of professionals assisting you through every phase of your journey. Our physicians provide a variety of customized surgical weight loss options such as: • Sleeve Gastrectomy • Intragastric Balloon System • Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding (Lap Band®) To learn more, contact us today. Call 800.433.3130 or visit AMITAhealth.org/WeightLoss © 2016 AMITA Health 160289
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