By Priscilla Gruber –
April Fool’s Day the Kendall County Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) will hold the only public hearing at 7 p.m. Monday, April 1 scheduled on the County’s revised proposal 17-28 regulating commercial gun ranges. It is not about non-commercial backyard shooting which the County’s Law Justice and Legislation (LJL) committee decided should happen with no limits. February 11 the Planning Building and Zoning (PBZ) Committee, suddenly announced some revisions to their inadequate proposal 17-28 just before they adjourned the meeting. Then they verbally threw out some more ideas to be drafted by someone (who?) (later?). They immediately voted to send this incomplete proposal to the Zoning Board of Appeals for its required by law Public Hearing on April Fool’s Day. The resulting contradictory and unsatisfactory proposal they posted later. It can be found under zoning petitions on the County website.
It has some provisions improved over the earlier version, but then opens the door to take them away. In it the County puts safety rules in place, then when someone asks for an exemption the County has the burden to prove why they shouldn’t give up their own rules. Does that make sense? It’s as though they filled a bucket with water and then drilled holes in it. On this part and others it definitely needs more work! Please review it and my suggestions for plugging the holes. It could be something our County can be proud of.
My short version of plugging the holes is:
• Increase buffer zone around homes, schools, etc. from 1,000 to 1,500 feet and measure it from lot lines. The State of Illinois guideline is 3,000 feet.
• Require gun range applicants to justify their request for exemption from the rules instead of requiring the county to justify its denial of the request.
• Do not exclude County Forest Preserve property from the requirements.
• Baffles above the firing range to reduce stray bullets should be required, not optional.
The Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) listens to us, then votes yes or no on recommending it as it reads now and gives their reasons. Last Fall they voted no to the earlier version of this proposal and it was sent back to be revised. This is the only opportunity scheduled for public comments on the County’s latest proposal. The next step forward for the proposal takes it directly to the County Board. At the County Board the Na-Au-Say Township objection filed on the earlier version no longer applies. This objection had required a super majority vote at the County Board, so now if a new Township objection is not filed, the proposal will pass at the County Board with a simple majority vote.
So, what needs to be done? We all come to the ZBA April 1 public hearing and ask the ZBA to recommend this flawed proposal be changed. If we don’t speak up, it likely will become law in May.