Where To Grow From Here?

The first meeting of the Land Use Plan Management Committee brought out about a dozen residents on Tuesday, June 14.

Described as a working meeting where public input would be limited, the Committee discussed how they would review the Village Land Use Plan, and the potential areas that could be changed.

The Land Use Plan was adopted in November 2009 after six years of neighborhood meetings. The document takes a view of how village administrators, current board members and its residents expect the village to grow and is often called a tool for growth. The zoning map implements the land use plan, but the committee does not intend to make changes to the zoning map, said Julie Anderson, zoning administrator for the village.

Anderson outlined the process that the Committee would need to use, which included identifying areas that need to be changed, giving the list to the Village Board, and engaging those neighborhoods in a public discussion.

“Obviously, not everything needs to be redone,” Anderson said. “These are minor modifications based on changes that are happening now. The process doesn’t have to take long, but the law requires us to have public participation.”

Mike Hayek, the village engineer, explained the land use consisted of four different plans, which includes the existing zoning classifications and a 2035 plan.

Tom Weatherston, village board member and Committee chairman, asked the Committee to identify a list of items they would like to review and bring that back to the next Committee meeting. He spoke of the need for the review.

“It was obvious to me that the circumstances were much different when the land use plan was happening,” Weatherston said. “We shouldn’t be taking a knee jerk reaction to changing the land use plan just because of the economy, but things certainly have changed.”

The Committee is expected to meet again at 1 p.m. July 13 at the Caledonia Police Department, 6922 Nicholson Rd., in the courtroom.