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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJPZ - 08/26/1999 - PROPERTY MAINTENANCE REGS VV ELK GROVE VILLAGE Judiciary, Planning & Zoning Committee Meeting Minutes August 26, 1999 7:00 P.M. Members Present: Trustee Lissner Trustee Czarnik Trustee Prochno Staff: Steve Trudan, Ass 't. Director, Comm. Dev. Steve Schmidt, Chief of Police Mike Cavallini, Health Services Coordinator Others: (See attached sign-in sheet) The meeting was called to order at 7:05 P.M. With several residents present in the audience, the meeting proceeded in the form of an open discussion among the members of the JPZ, Village staff and the audience. Trustee Lissner began the meeting by explaining how the Village currently regulates property maintenance and added that the purpose of the meeting was to receive input from the residents of the Village regarding consideration of expanding the current Village regulations pertaining to property maintenance and aesthetics. Some residents said they knew of people who were cited by the village for housing violations almost immediately upon buying the property and suggested that the Village inspect all homes prior to their sale. The intent of this suggestion was to make sure new buyers were aware of problems before they buy. Other residents complained about having to pay the village a "user tax" for selling their homes when the Village did nothing for it. One resident voiced her approval of the Village adopting more aesthetic regulations and cited a neighbor who was allowed to construct a plywood door where the garage door once was as long as it was weatherproof. Some residents inquired about Village regulations that pertain to barking dogs, animal droppings and dogs being tied up in front yards in reach of the public sidewalk. Steve Schmidt explained the Municipal Ordinance regulations. Mike Cavallini also explained that the Health Department had regulations prohibiting the accumulation of animal droppings and advised the audience to Page 2 call the Health Department if they had a complaint. A general comment was made from a resident that they felt the Village should be stricter in enforcing the current regulations. Steve Trudan briefly explained how the Property Maintenance Code was enforced by the Department of Community Development. Several comments were made about campers, inoperable vehicles, commercial vehicles and RV's being parked in driveways, which sometimes block the public sidewalk. Some residents complained that they knew of vehicles that were parked for years with flat tires, no license plates, and hadn't been driven for years. Steve Schmidt explained that inoperable vehicles cannot be parked on driveways and that people can easily fix flat tires or make other minor repairs to quickly bring the vehicles into conformance with the regulations. He further explained that vehicles need not display current license plates unless they are on the roadways and that Village vehicle stickers are required. A suggestion from the audience was made to expand the definition of "inoperable vehicles". Several residents brought up specific complaints about properties within the Village and members of the JPZ Committee advised them to either talk to staff after the meeting or call the appropriate department the next day. After further general discussion, it was once again suggested that the Village be more strict in the enforcement and follow-up inspection procedures for property maintenance violations. It was also suggested that one property maintenance inspector was not enough to enforce the ordinance. Several residents brought up the fact that they can't walk around the block due to commercial vehicles blocking the sidewalk and questioned why the Village permits this. Trustee Czarnik explained that as families grow their needs for more cars add to this problem and that they have to park on the driveways because the Village prohibits parking on the streets overnight. A resident told the Committee that his neighbor had a very large tree in the backyard that overhangs into his yard and asked what the legal restrictions were. The JPZ Committee explained that that was one of the possible regulations they were investigating. Page 3 A resident explained that out of all of the complaints he had heard almost all of them were covered by current ordinances and that the other members of the audience should be very careful about asking for stricter regulations because they may not get what they thought they were asking for. He suggested that we all should be careful that we do not unintentionally empower the Village to dictate what we can do to our properties to an unreasonable degree. Trustee Czarnik reminded the audience that the purpose of the meeting was to get new ideas from the residents of the Village. One resident suggested that we have stiffer penalties and fines for people who allow accumulations of dog droppings, and another suggestion was made that the Village require the removal of existing driveways when an new, detached garage is constructed with a separate driveway. Some residents expressed the opinion that they should not have to call the Village to complain about their neighbors and that the Village should provide adequate staff to enforce the ordinances. One of the residents stated that he knew of three rental properties in his neighborhood that were not kept up properly. Another resident stated that he knew of a man who regularly went over to those three homes and pulled weeds during the summer from his wheelchair because he cared enough about his community to be involved. He also stated that some elderly people would love to make improvements to their homes such as re-roofing or removing overgrown trees, but they cannot because of physical and financial reasons. He added that the term "aesthetically pleasing" is undefinable. Trustee Prochno added that you cannot define aesthetics in such a way that would be acceptable to everyone. The gentleman's final comment was that he would like to see the Village require residents to shovel snow from sidewalks. A resident asked what the Village could do to regulate rental properties. Steve Trudan explained that rental properties are inspected annually and that enforcement and follow-up are sometimes difficult due to the actual owners of the properties not living in the area. It was suggested that the Village publish a list of things that are commonly found to be objectionable to neighbors in the local newspaper or the Villager newsletter. Another gentlemen expressed a desire to make a suggestion regarding the upgrading of Village streetlight poles. Page 4 The meeting was adjourned around 9:00 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Stevedan �`� Assistant Director, Community Development Attachment C: Chairperson and Members of JPZ Committee, President and Board of Trustees, Village Clerk, Village Manager, Assistant Village Manager, Administrative Assistant, Administrative Intern, Director of Engineering & Community Development, Director of Public Works, Fire Chief, Deputy Fire Chief(2) , Assistant Fire Chief, Village Attorney, Health Coordinator o t7 7 L4 3fi -3-70` I-' Nlf a /�rs. Wil ;m Frgse-r /Sd! `) Dr, ,,7 lr A�%/- ' / 97 Ami Li c-hner 388 O-e-dar Lane 3ULA - I asp �uo1 A buff-q R3 6)wmoaf Dr. (oqD-7510 T" Wi �35 - '7,q( 'l �re -5 a 02 /30x as 3 -3Z • 13a& Aq 'f !4 _ /3 �c733 H/9fL Fc,n- Y37- 33 ?"-tL _ 2zy- QzL� 712 CA R- Z � ,� Q r V P y l�Cf1 LtJc 51V I Q cd /) f 'I V Q $•• z G-Y' q �oF � SUGGESTIONS FOR ORDINANCES FROM NICK NIKOLA 114 ESSEX RD. (847) 593-5410 Unobstructed easement (riparian zone) along Salt Creek: to accommodate flood water and wild life egress. No Dumping into creek-with fines, e.g.: grass clippings, dog waste, chemicals, etc. Protection Of Wild Life: no harming of any kind to the wild life in along the creek, e.g.: throwing rocks or other objects and shooting pellet guns. Any improvements for stream bank must have permits approved by village. No allowance or restrictions of impending stream flow in Salt Creek unless permitted by approval. Storm drains: fines for dumping pollution, e.g.: oil, paint, radiator fluid, solvents etc. Stream bank stabilization continuity and mandate: if grant monies acquired may be necessary to insist upon land owners to participate. Creation of storm water management/environmental committee, to make sure all land development meets all federal, state and local codes and regulations. Can also address issues of stream bank stabilization in future if necessary. May be necessary to qualify for grant money. Residential Ordinances: Public sidewalks egress must keep bushes & trees pruned to allow full access of sidewalk. Rain water and sump pumps not allowed to flow into sanitary system. Snow removal from sidewalks. Secure garbage especially on pick up days from animal dumping while seeking food and from the wind blowing them down. I . 11ltK a� Allotted time frame for seasonal decorations on exteriors of homes & business. Sporting implements not allowed in streets, e.g.: hockey nets, skate board boxes etc. RECEIVEj� August 23, 1999 AUG 2 41999 D VILLAGE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE JPZ Committee 901 Wellington Avenue Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 RE: Housing and Maintenance Regulations Dear JPZ Committee: My concern is cars that are parked in side driveways. I realize that the side driveway of each house is private property,but I do not think the sidewalk is. I like to walk and from what I see in my particular neighborhood a lot of other people do to. You cannot walk down any block in the village without walking around cars, vans and trucks that are parked across the sidewalks. I have seen mothers with strollers and toddlers having to walk in the street trying to pass a vehicle that is parked across a sidewalk. I am sure there are also a lot of seniors and handicapped that have also encountered this. Taking a leisurely walk in town is like encountering an obstacle course. Sincerely, A concerned citizen. ECEIVE August 23rd, 1999 AUG 2 4 1999 Village Hall VILLAGE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE 901 Wellington Ave c/o JPZ Committee Elk Grove Vlg, IL 60007 Dear JPZ Committee: I strongly urge you to include a housing appearance regulation that would restrict and within a given time frame, forbid the parking of decaying and non-functional automobiles in resedential drive ways. Peeling paint cannot compare to the disgusting scene of rusting junk automobiles that sit in drive ways month after month after month. And it is these totting vehicles that have to be viewed by responsible residents day after day and month after month. All else may be perfect but drop a pile of motorized junk in the drive way and nothing else matters. Take action againsit this problem that has gone on since I have been a resident for over 25 years. Yours truly, Byron T. Dollas August 24, 1999 The Rich residence at 520 Newberry caned in to express their views on the Housing APPearance law. They think it is a good idea and are in favor of it, g 208 Ridgewood Rd Elk Grove Vlg 11160007 August 24, 1999 Judiciary, Planning and Zoning Committee 901 Wellington Avenue Elk Grove Village, Il 60007 Sir: I am writing this letter in response to the village considering amending the housing appearance law. The intent of the original ordnance was to prevent real state agents from creating slum houses in our neighborhoods. Its intent wasn't to harass the elderly and mid to low income, with college educations and medical bills to pay for, owners into mortgaging or moving from their homes because of old roofs, landscape that may not be professionally done or too many weeds in the lawn. The average income of the village resident may be$50,00.00 but we all don't live west of Rt 53. If you want to amend the law, do so by having all trash removed from front yards and have all vehicle and recreational equipment that requires a truck or trailer display a current license plate and village sticker. As a resident and village letter carrier, I have seen a house on Cedar Ln. that has an old Jeep Wagoneer with broken windows and a slide in camper that hasn't moved in 8 years with the front yard full of trash. I believe that is what is the eye sore of the neighborhoods. P.S. A brick paved walk and other amendments alone Salt Creek, like the one in Naperville along their river, would be an asset to the village. Yours truly; Kenneth&Joyce Williams Good morning, I am Phil Eckert and have lived on White Trail for 25 years. My wife and have enjoyed the Village, raised a big family and am now looking to retirement. Today I read with interest the note on the front page of the Villager concerning the appearance of homes in the Village. 1 would like to add my two cents. There are 2 areas that need the attention of everyone. In reality I believe the Village is in some part responsible. I am referring to the privacy fence that boarder the public roads. Many styles, colors and various states of aging and disrepair. The Village, years ago should have standardized all fences to keep the appearance up to the level that matches the high standards set in other areas. The other point is Mr. Bo'S, this is the entrance to the Village for many travelers and it looks like a dump. Mr. Bo's does Business with the Village, and, as I understand, the father-in-law to our President. Can something be done to clean this up. It is my understanding that this is unincorporated Elk Grove, is it possible to put a sign up indicating were the Village begins. For a minute I would like to go back to my first point about the fences. I understand this can be an issue of private vs public, it is like the improvements being made to the industrial park. Funds from this same tax can be used to fix the fence issue by the Village replacing them at no cost to the home owner. I look forward to you comments. Mr. Dill stopped by my house the other day and I am sorry was out, I would have like to discuss these issues with him. Best regards, Phil Eckert Ray Rummel -- 1 -- Tue, 24 Aug 1999 09:16:46 JPZ Committee: I realize you are having concerns on the housing appearance law, but I have a concern that is virtually as hideous as peeling paint. To give you some background, I have work in the village for 30 years and lived here for 19 years (two houses). I loath the view of a motor home continually sitiing unused in a driveway. How about the trailers with the snow mobiles on them or even the boats that seem to never be used all summer. This is far more distracting for the eye than any peeling paint and unkept home. If you take a look from down the block you will find what I am saying is true. How would you like to live next to a motor home that blocks out your light from the side of your home. This is one of the reasons we moved to another home in Elk Grove. Robert G. Landis 973 Mississippi Lane Elk Grove, IL 60007-2941 Ray Rummel -- 1 -- Tue, 24 Aug 1999 09:44:58 In the August edition of the "Elk Grove Villager," it was stated that residents may contact the Village to voice their opinions via E-Mail. First, I'd like to state that I am very happy to hear my Village is considering the addition of aesthetic concerns to the Village's Housing Maintenance regulations. I live at 602 Lindale Street, and have been a resident of Elk Grove Village for over 33 years. 1 love Elk Grove Village, as can be attested by the amount of years I've lived here. Through the last 30+ years, I have seen a lot of changes. I have been a good, law-abiding citizen, taking pride in my residence, and mind my own business. Maybe this is the right forum to bring up my opinion of housing appearance. Over the last several years, there has been an onslaught of a certain ethnic group that has moved into my neighborhood. In fact, there aren't too many Caucasians in my area anymore. I sometimes feel like a foreigner in my own block area of town. I can live with this. But, what really perturbs me is that this certain ethnic group of people who have moved into homes around me, do not take pride in their residence, or try to keep their homes up to Village standards. As an example — they do paint their houses, but evidently do not care if the paint goes all over their bricks on their houses or even if they paint over their roof shingles in error. I'm not just talking paint drips here, it appears their paint brush goes down the bricks in error, and who cares? It is disgraceful! It really makes the value of my home go down! I also cannot help noticing how many individuals live in each of these houses. There appears to be numerous families and a lot of kids living under one roof. There are numerous cars in driveways overnight to accommodate the multiple families living in the houses. Do we not have an ordinance for this? Why don't we have inspectors checking these families out to see if they are in compliance with our Village ordinance (if we have one)? I would appreciate if you could address the above stated concerns and respond to me at your earliest convenience. Thank you for listening. Mary Ann Tate Ray Rummel -- 1 -- Tue, 24 Aug 1999 09:15:21 August 23, 1999 Telephone Note Caller: William Jaworski 592 Lowestoft 228-6046 Call taken by Ray Rummel. Mr. Jaworski may have a work obligation preventing him from attending the JPZ meeting. He feels the residential areas of Elk Grove are in fantastic shape. Homes are well kept. There are no eyesores. The Village should keep its existing housing maintenance regulations, but do not create more. He does not want the Village dictating how people maintain their property. Its too much government intrusion into people's lives. The Village could do more with respect to commercial areas, industrial areas,and absentee landlords with rental homes in Elk Grove. Finally, he felt the Village should set an example by purchasing decorative street lights and continuing to replace sidewalk and curbs. August 23, 1999 Telephone Message Note 8:35 AM Caller: Dave Venetucci 1197 Bosworth 439-9155 Mr. Venetucci is calling due to the newsletter article about the housing appearance code. He is supportive of strengthening the Village's housing maintenance code. Most homes in the Village are well kept and make a positive statement about Elk Grove. However, a small percentage of homes are poorly kept on the outside which make a negative statement about Elk Grove and lower the property values of neighborhoods. Mr. Venetucci does not plan to attend the JPZ meeting, but he is available by telephone should anyone wish to speak with him. August 23, 1999 Walk-Up to Counter Note 3:30 pm Customer: Fred Harvey Westview Drive Mr. Harvey plans to attend the JPZ meeting. He wants the Village to take more action concerning housing maintenance. He feels that one particular neighbor fails to maintain his property and this causes property values to decline in the neighborhood. The Village should strengthen its codes to protect law abiding residents against inconsiderate neighbors. He then provided specific information about a neighbor at 270 Harmony. The Village will send inspectors to the neighbor's home to investigate the complaints. Ray Rummel August 24, 1999 Resident Anthony Scelsa residing at 743 Schooner called in to express his views regarding garbage. Recycling bins should not be allowed outside of the house. They are tired of picking up garbage. There should be an Ordinance regarding how many feet back the trash cans should be placed so that you cannot see the garbage. Something should be done about people placing old rugs, etc. on the side of their houses. August 24, 1999 Please be advised that I received a telephone call from resident Ann Swanson at telephone number 439-7854 %vho wished to make a suggestion regarding recycling bins. She said it looks terrible for recycling bins to be in front of the house and that there are some towns that place them on the side or back of the house. She suggested that Elk Grove do the same. Pat August 24, 1999 Telephone Message 3:30 pm Caller: Gloria Uhaus 88 Kenilworth Home: 364-2404 Work: 773-792-0909 Gloria cannot make the meeting but she wanted to express her concerns. Gloria supports increasing the Village's housing aesthetic code. She is a real estate agent and walks the community. She sees many homes with crooked shutters, more weeds than grass, and refuse cans in the side yard. In addition, she feels that rental homes need special attention. The renters do not take care of the property. These homes fall into disrepair and the absentee landlord does not look after the property. Other concerns she has include: cars parked overhanging the sidewalk and junk looking cars. Her final comment was the neighborhood north of Oakton needs attention in terms of aesthetic improvements. Call taken by Ray Rummel. From: Ray Rummel <mimmel@mailhost.elkgrove.org> To: "Doug L. Schreiber" <Doug.Schreiber@ey.com> Subject: Re: Housing Appearance Law Send reply to: rrummel@elkgrove.org Date sent: Tue, 24 Aug 1999 10:49:51 -0600 Thank you for writing. Your comments will be shared with the Judiciary,Planning, and Zoning Committee of the Village Board. There are no currently proposed changes to post on a web site. The concept is still in the exploratory stages. The Village provides residents in violation of Housing Maintenance Codes with notice and several weeks time to bring the concern into compliance. This time limit is extended if a hardship exists. The homeowner need simply call and ask for an extension. There are significant resources in the community for those with a hardship. Those with a financial hardship are eligible for low interest and no interest grants and loans through the Cook County Block Grant Program to perform repairs to their homes. In addition,our Community Service Office also works with School District#214 to coordinate their SOS (Save Our Seniors)program whereby high school students volunteer to perform painting and yard clean-up work for seniors. Further, the Community Service Office works to coordinate the annual Paint-A-Thon for those needing volunteer manpower to paint a home. Finally, local church groups provide volunteer assistance to perform yard work for those with a need. Again, thank you for writing. Raymond R. Rummel Assistant Village Manager Date sent: Tue, 24 Aug 1999 10:12:52 -0500 From: "Doug L. Schreiber" <Doug.Schreibera(,ev.com> Subject: Housing Appearance Law To: vmo@elk oar ve.org >Is the current standard and the proposed changes available anywhere on a WEB site?If not, could you send it to me via return e-mail? >I agree that there are a few houses in the village that could use a bit of upkeep. >What might be a novel idea is to notify the owner of the required changes and ask when and if they can make the changes to get up to "code". For those that say they cannot, if we could make that list available to a group of volunteers in the village who would be willing to commit resources (esp. their time) to help with the updates. Maybe the village could contribute the raw material, e.g.,paint. Then, in order to keep people from abusing the system, we could either post a sign in the front lawn indicating that the volunteer group was doing the work or, have the village finace chairman(or the like) review the request. We'd have to set some "financial hardship" guidelines. I'd be willing to be involved in setting up a program like this. >Note: The information contained in this message may be privileged and confidential and protected from disclosure. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, or an employee or agent responsible for delivering this message to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by replying to the message and deleting it from your computer. Thank you. Ernst&Young LLP RECEIV August 23, 1999 E AUG 2 41999 VILLAGE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE JPZ Committee 901 Wellington Avenue Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 RE: Housing and Maintenance Regulations Dear JPZ Committee: My concern is cars that are parked in side driveways. I realize that the side driveway of each house is private property, but I do not think the sidewalk is. I like to walk and from what I see in my particular neighborhood a lot of other people do to. You cannot walk down any block in the village without walking around cars, vans and trucks that are parked across the sidewalks. I have seen mothers with strollers and toddlers having to walk in the street trying to pass a vehicle that is parked across a sidewalk. I am sure there are also a lot of seniors and handicapped that have also encountered this. Taking a leisurely walk in town is like encountering an obstacle course. Sincerely, A concerned citizen. DECEIVEU August 23rd, 1999 (� AUG 2 4 1999 Village Hall VILLAGE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE 901 Wellington Ave c/o JPZ Committee Elk Grove Vlq, IL 60007 Dear JPZ Committee : I strongly urge you to include a housing appearance regulation that would restrict and within a given time frame, forbid the parking of decaying and non-functional automobiles in resedential drive ways. Peeling paint cannot compare to the disgusting scene of rusting junk automobiles that sit in drive ways month after month after month. And it is these totting vehicles that have to be viewed by responsible residents day after day and month after month. All else may be perfect but drop a pile of motorized junk in the drive way and nothing else matters. Take action againsit this problem that has gone on since I have been a resident for over 25 years. Yours truly, i r Byron T. Dollas August 24, 1999 The Rich residence at 520 Newberry called in to express their views on the Housing Appearance law. They think it is a good idea and are in favor of it.