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PAGE 10-PLAINDEALER--FRIDAY, MAY 13, 1977 Sound Off McHenryZoningHassle Goes On-And On! Former Zoning Board Chairman Speaks Out (Because of the continuing controversy over the recent zoning hearing regarding property on Rt. 31 south. Paul Fidler. Zoning board chairman when the hearing was held, has expressed his views and an­ swered questions of a Plain- dealer reporter) i think people are looking for a whipping boy on this last zoning hearing, and I don't intend for me to be the boy. I don't think all the facts have come out as to what really has transpired and I don't think that the hearing we had was a fiasco "After a number of years of being involved in the zoning, people who come to the zoning hearing. are probably coming for the first time, and they don't really understand the system, the way it is operated 'I have found that the easiest way in the past was to let the people ask the questions to the petition. What happens is they ask a question, and then they get, into a dissertation about what it's all about, which they could do eventually by testifying. I found it easier to let them make a little bit of a statement, and then they didn't feel like they were being put down. When you have a great number of objectors, someone right away just insists that they are going to make a statement." How long had you been the Zoning board chairman? "Dick Zieman was chairman of the zoning board at the time Don Doherty was mayor. Fred Lamb was appointed when Joe w?s mayor, and he died. I have been Zoning board chairman for about three years." In that time had you ever faced such a hearing with such a mass of objectors? "No We have had objectors and we have had hearings where people have objected and got rather vocal, but never n the numbers that we had in his case. Basically, as far as .he fiasco aspect of it is con­ cerned, I don't really think it was a fiasco hy any means. We managed to get the hearing through and over with, and we got the information we needed.' There has been some talk about the Zoning board vote, taken by phone, being illegal. What are your thoughts about that? "As far as the vote being illegal is concerned, the zoning ordinance states that we can set up our own procedures as long as they're not in violation of state statutes/I've never been told that there was anything illegal about taking a vote on the telephone It's been a procedure and a practice before I was chairman of the Zoning board. With the city attorney saying there's something illegal about it, if this is true, then I would say that about 50 percent of the zoning hearings that have been held in the last eight years have been illegal because there have been a lot of votes taken by telephone It's been standard policy." Why did you change your vote from being against the zoning petition to abstaining? "Mr. Wilkins said that I changed my vote. At the meeting I knbw I didn't voice a vote. I recorded the votes as people voted and I didn't record mine. I think that when I called everyone of the board members with the exception of Clint Claypool. who wasn't available, I may have said, 'I changed my vote,' but I don't really remember if I used that term or not. Mold them I was ab­ staining -and I told them basically why*" You didn't voice a vote, 'yes,' 'no,' or 'abstain' at the Zoning hearing? "That's right." What occurred at the Zoning hearing after the petitioners and objectors left? "There was very little discussion at the Zoning hearing relative to the possible applications or recom­ mendations we could have made. Mr. Wilkins, after very little discussion, made a motion, and it was seconded, to deny the entire petition. You have to vote ®n it, and the five votes were made to deny it. When I came home, listened to the tapes, and reviewed my notes, I suddenly realized that a lot of the objections were to the apartment complex, and I couldn't vote 'no' to the entire thing because I am thoroughly convinced that Rt. 31 is going to be commercial. It's preor­ dained. The city has done it by accepting the industrial park on a preannexation agreement, and the county has done it by allowing business on Rt. 31 south of there. Regardless of whether the people like it or 7th Amiiverstiy Sal a NOW IN PROGRESS! FRI--SAT--SUN,MAY 13,14*15 FROM 9:30 to 5:00 ALL SIMPLICITY PATTERNS ONLY ALL FABRICS NOW ON SALE EVERY BOLT REDUCED! Countryside Fabric Shoppe 7129 Barnard Mill Rd. Wondar Lake -- 653-7699 £ ? I I I Sop Learn to Super Sew Take 8 ea*>. inexpensive lewM»n* using Ann Person'n unique -ening method*. It"* simple -- it's fun -- it's fust -- and it fit*! Starting Basic 8 Classes with Openinfs: Tuesday, May 17,1:00 P.M. Wednesday, May 25,9:30 A.M. Monday, June 13, 7:00 P.M. 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Was there any discussion among Zoning board members concerning splitting the Pin- tozzi and Buss petition, giving the okay to one while denying the other? "No. there was nothing said at the zoning hearing relative to the zoning hearing and splitting them apart." Were politics involved in the Zoning hearing? "I think this thing has become super political. We have thirty days to make a recommendation to the City Council. I called Mr. Stanek and asked him if he'd prefer I didn't send a recommendation to the City Council until after the election to keep the politics out of it. and he said. No. I want it immediately, before the next meeting if you can get it to me.' which I did. There were three members of the Zoning board that were running for public office at the time, and two from the same ward. Politics and zoning should not be mixed, and I think this is what has happened. The tapes from the hearing were available to the City Council. The recommendation that comes from the chairman, as far as I am concerned, is a summary of the hearing. It's not a verbatim thing that they would have to take hours to read. If they wanted to go into it more, and they were very much concerned, they could come to the hearing and participate. Liz Nolan was there, Clint Gaypool. who was running for alderman in a different ward, was there, and Ron Wilkins, who was running for the school board, was there. Three people running for political of;ice were there at a time when politics should not be involved. We're going to judge this thing on its merit, not on politics. If I were running for political office, and there were 100 people there saying 'I don't want this,' I know how I'd vote before I even heard anything." Given the political overtones, do you think there was any way the petitioners could get a fair hearing before the zoning board? "I wouldn't use the word 'fair,' because I hope that the, zoning hearing was fair. I doubted in my own mind that they were ever going to get it through because of the election. There was too much politics." What is the role of the Zoning board as you see it? "The Zoning ordinance is a published fact that the Zoning board hears petitions for variations and reclassifications of property in the city of McHenry, and make a recommendation to the City Council based on the in­ formation that is presented by the petitioner We are not paid, and are really concerned citizens who are trying to maintain a city. We only recommend and the City Council makes the final decision, but they need a two- thirds majority to override the recommendation." Are you in accord with the feelings expressed by 'Bud' Adams when he resigned from the Zoning board after the board voted to deny the Buss and Pintozzi petition? "No. not necesarily. I think that Bud's remarks that a businessman has no chance is not true. There have been cases where we have turned them down. He mentioned to me one, Torkelson. wanted to use a lot that is in back of his garage for autqmobile storage. The whole street is residential and we turned him down. In a case like that, he was turned down, but only I think for the good of the residential neighborhood. But, basically I think that we have almost bent over backwards in many cases to accommodate businesses and people who are trying to create a commercial enterprise in an area where it should be. A lot of people are going to be shocked one of these days to find out that when Whispering Oaks was taken into the city, it was a planned unit development, and up there alongside of the Carestoel Nursing home, it's all zoned commercial. They can put in a food mart up there or a shop­ ping center or anything. This is what the City Council did. They also have a planned unit development out north of town, past the Catholic church. That was taken into the city and it has never been developed. These all bypassed the Zoning board and went directly to the City Council. They made the decision so the Zoning board never had a recommendation." What made this case special and why was it different? "I think it was different because there was a big group of people objecting primarily to the apartment complex. Also, we were involved in an election and people were looking for votes." Were you satisfied with the City Council vote to override the Zoning board recom­ mendation? "I am. I think it's reasonable. I think Rt. 31, although the people objected, is going to be commercial." Does the Planning com­ mission normally give an opinion to the Zoning board on its • feelings toward the rezoning, and did the Planning commission give the Zoning board an opinion in the Buss and Pintozzi petition? "Yes, very often they will come to us. In this case, with Buss and Pintozzi, they didn't. The Planning commission is exactly what it is, it's a plan. It's no more than that. They can change as time goes on. Prior to 1960, we didn't have a Zoning ordinance in the city. The man who masterminded it all is the former City Attorney, John Looze, who I think is probably as knowledgeable about zoning as anyone around. Using Pearl street as an example, on one side is all GLEN CAMPBELL Southern Nights ON SALE NOW AT $4.99 for LP OR TAPE REG. $7.98 LIST Melody Maker Records zoned business. I think the thought was that eventually the business areas of Green street and Riverside drive would eventually join up." What about future zoning in McHenry on the major high­ ways? "I think the main highways are all going to be commercial. It is going to be commercial north. The county has already- done that. They have a bowling alley, McHenry Well and Pump, a restaurant, and a disco, and that is establishing a pattern." What is GOOD zoning? 'There are various zoning concepts and ideas, but the one that I have mentioned is that you try to build buffers between the various classifications of zoning so that you have single family, and then you would have an apartment complex, and then would have com­ mercial. and then industrial and maybe heavy industrial. Or, you will keep all your in­ dustry in one particular part of the city so that it is centralized so that traffic and pollution aren't spread throughout the city" ^ In the eight years that you have been on the Zoning board, has the City Council ever overturned a recommendation before? "No." Do you feel that you were unfair to either the petitioners or the objectors in the way you conducted the Zoning board hearing? "No, not at all. It's easier to deal in a situation like that with an attorney because he un­ derstands what the procedures are It's a little more difficult to deal with the individual ob­ jector because it's probably the first time he's been to a Zoning board hearing, and you say, Are there any objectors?' and he jumps up and says 'Yes, I object,' and begins to tell you why. This is fine. We want to know why he objects, but there is a time and place. To try to compromise in conducting the meeting and getting the facts out. I have adopted the policy of letting the objector ask his question. Then he probably will make some sort of statement, which probably should be held " to the end of the meeting when he has a chance to get up under oath. But it ends up that you get the information needed-the information from the petitioner and the information from the objector--and you don't stifle anybody and don't try to belittle them. I had some friends at the meeting who said the meeting was conducted just fine." If you had to conduct the hearing again tomorrow, would you change anything from the way it was handled? "I don't think I'd really change much as far as the Zoning board hearing is con­ cerned. I'm sorry that the motion to deny the whole parcel was made before the Zoning board had, in my opinion, a chance to think about it. Within an hour of the time the Zoning hearing was over, the motion was made and the whole thing voted on. I think that sometimes these things are a little more complicated that they appear." In your opinion, since none of the aldermen bothered to listen to the tapes, did they really want further information? "In my opinion they just wanted to wait until after the election. Possibly, they didn't know who was going to be on the Council. People were looking for votes. You've got 100 people as objectors, and if Public Pulse (The Pl»inde«lw invite* the public f» M»i» column at an their views on sublect* of general interest in our cominunl^ Our only request is that the writers give • signature, full address and We ask too, that one individual not write on the same subject more than once each month. We reserve the right to delete any material which we consider libelous or in objectionable taste.) 2917W. RTE. 120 McHENRY, ILL. 385-1122 Mon.-Thurs. 11-10 Fri.ftSot. 11-11 Sun. 11-9 @ ® © @ © © Capitol, Capitol, Capitol, Capitol, Capitol. Capitol, "Editor: ' 9 "As you know, the McHenry City Council voted to overrule the Zoning Board of. Appeals and allow a Ford dealership next to Edgebrook Heights on Rt 31. Some of the comments vhat were floating around the Council chamber immediately after the vote were that the vote was set up, that it looked as* though the aldermen had their minds made up in advance, it was a strictly political move, etc., etc. "Being, as I am, a firm believer in the ideal that it is wrong for a writer to cast doubts and aspersions upon persons without having anything more than cir­ cumstantial evidence, I°will not say whether or not any of those comments merit attention. Let us, however, examine the facts about the vote aftd the questions those facts raise, and let each reader decide for himself. "F'irst of all, let's consider the Council's decision to defer action until after the election. Their reason, so they said, was that they needed more time to gather information, especially for a case such as this. "How could it possibly have , been to get more information when three of the aldermen were definitely not returning and when there was the distinct possibility of five new alder­ men as well as a new mayor? If it were to gather information, why didn't any of the aldermen listen to the tapes of the Zoning board hearing? And just what makes this zoning request so unique? "It is interesting to note that the only aldermen who voted to uphold the Zoning board's recommendaiton were the Ward 1 aldermen--the Edgebrook Heights aldermen. Also in­ teresting is the fact that two of the three new aldermen voted to overrule the Zoning board's recommendation, directly against Mayor Stanek, who voted to uphold the recom­ mendation. "It looks as though Harker's big campaign issue, lack of harmony, has become an issue once again, but wait! Bill Bolger voted with the mayor even though he was vice- chairman of the Harker-for- mayor campaign! And as long you voice an opinion, someone is likely to lose 100 votes." Finally, when your term expired April 30, Mayor Stanek did not reappoint you. What are your feelings on that? "He said that he wasn't going to reappoint me and I assumed that it was because I didn't campaign for him. I didn't campaign for anybody. I've tried to remain non-political because I don't believe zoning and politics can mix. Mr. Wilkins did it, signing a request to vote for the mayor. I think probably I was removed because I didn't campaign. I'm sure that there were other reasons said for it, such as that I am incompetent and didn't do my job, but I don't think that's the real reason. Rather, the mayor didn't appreciate the fact that I didn't pound the pavement for him and he was being opposed by an alderman, and most of the aldermen were against him according to the newspaper." COME AU you TRAVELING VAGABONDS 2 DAYS AT THE FABULOUS -- HEIDEL HOUSE -- -- IN WISCONSIN -- GIFT SHOPS BINGO, CARDS BOAT RIDES DANCE PARTY ALL MEALS INCLUDED ALL ATTRACTIONS INCLUDED Round Trip Transportation on Luxury Air Conditioned Motor Coach equipped with rest room SUNDAY JUNE 19th--LV. McHENRY at 9AM MONDAY JUNE 20th--AV. McHENRY ot 6PM $5995 DBL. OCCUPANCY jNCLUDES EVERYTHING RESERVATIONS MUST BE IN BY JUNE 4th CALL 385-1500 - Ask For Trip No. 12 RESERVE NOW -- FIRST COME -- FIRST SERVED as we're on the subject of Bill Bolger's vote, why did he vote against both |jhe Pintozzi apartments and the Buss ford dealership and fail to second a motion by Liz Nolan that would have accomplished the same in one vote? . "Let's forget about the Council's vote for a minute and turn to the Zoning board's. It seems the validity of their vote has been challenged, the contention being that the vote was taken illegally. "Paul Fidler originally voted "no" but then changed his vote to "abstain". He did this when he called Bud Adams to see what his vote was. When Mr. Adams found out that he was the only one in favor of the zoning change, he fired off an apparently hastily written letter to the mayor that said it was obvious the businessman can't get a fair shake in McHenry, and resigned. "The challenge as to the validity of the vote lies in the fact that two of the members voted by phone; the only two who voted not to turn it down. If I were the aldermen who voted to approve the change, I would not justify my vote by arguing that one lawbreaker's vote carries more weight than five law abiders. "As for Mr. Adams letter, during the Council meeting Jack Pepping said that in his four years on the Zoning board, only one business request had been denied; commentary enough on Bud Adams and all the other business people who say the businessman can't get a fair shake in McHnery. "I don't believe the aldermen had the best interest of the city at heart. I am afraid that their vote has hurt not only Edgebrook Heights but the rest of the town as well. Oh-oh. I've done it - cast doubts and aspersions as to the integrity of the Council, but by overruling the Zoning board's recom­ mendation they set a very dangerous precedent. Our Zoning board's status has definitely been weakened. "The purpose of a Zoning board is to assist the Council in making sure that proposed zoning changes will be in the best interest of the city, and the way they know what the city wants is through the master plan. Well, if the Council is going to overturn its own recommendations, what is the use of a master plan? And what's the use of appointing outstanding Planning com­ missions? What good is there in having an excellent Zoning Board of Appeals when the Council says, in effect, to h-~ with you? And what's the sense in voting in aldermen who say the same to us? "Sincerely, "Steve Stanek" "Public Pulse: 1---"It seems to me that the report, "Overturn Zoning Board Recommendation" in the May 6, 1977, issue of The McHenry Plaindealer was not only not complete, it contained certain direct and other im­ plied value judgments that are not properly a part of a reporting of an event. I do not know who was responsible for the article - the writer or editor - but the fact is that significant parts of the presentations made at the Council meeting were omitted and certain parts of it contained errors which not only shaded the report, they, in fact, made it an untrue report. 2--"First to the value judgments. The reporter-editor called the original Zoning board meeting a 'fiasco' BOOK Almost any school boy knows that fiasco means a complete and ignominious failure. Whose judgment was it that the hearing was a fiasco? Yes. it was rather noisy and at times people spoke out of turn (don't they always in a large, emotional meeting?) but a fiasco? A dismal failure' Ignominious? "The writer-editor took direct aim at Paul Fidler. former chairman of the Zoning, Board of Appeals who with consummate sympathy at tempted to let all concerned people have a say -- much to the disgust of the attorney for the petitioners. To call the meeting a fiasco was not only grossly unfair, it was absolutely false 3--"How is it that the writer editor could say 'There is strong evidence that the original vote taken by the Zoning Board of Appeals was illegal ? There was, and is, no such evidence. Such was not confirmed by the city attorney in fact he denied that it was illegal or improper. Alderman Bolger was quoting from an outdated and replaced Zoning ordinance book -- and he knew it: he voted to replace the or dinance that he was quoting. He admitted that his ploy was to embarrass the Zoning Board of Appeals, and not to claim that the procedure was illegal. 4--"Why, in the report that was presented as 'complete was there no mention of the presentation by the chairman of the Zoning Board of Ap peals? His appearance was made at the request of the City council for "more information in the celebrated delayed vote in this case. 5--"Unlike the other statements made, this presentation was the most lengthy and the most detailed It spelled out the reasons for the Zoning Board of Appeals action, giving the reasons for the recommendation, pointing out, for example, that the petition violated both the Comprehensive plan and the Amended Zoning ordinance on nine different counts! You gave seven and one-half inches of space to the Bolger ploy and none to the very important testimony of the Zoning Board of Appeals! You did not even mention that John Armstrong's property would suffer severe damage as even the petitioners admitted. Incidentally, the reporter was handed a copy of the Zoning Board's report - why didn't he use it? 6--"Your reporter did not mention the appearance of the chairman of the McHenry Planning Commission nor give any of his testimony. Why was there such deafening silence on this point? What does the McHenry Plaindealer have to lose by reporting the facts"' 7--"I cannot end this letter to you without remarking about the quote attributed to Anthony Pintozzi. What does he mean, 'mass rule ? Does he object to the American Democratic system? 8--"To say that I am disappointed with this report is to put it mildly. As you know. I have been in the writing, reporting, printing game a long time, and I have become ac customed to seeing articles that are cut or mangled so that what is reported is a barely recognizable caricature of what occurred. I must tell you that the reports on this zoning petiiton have not been ac­ curate, and have been a serious disservice to the people of McHenry. If the reporter wants to do a job, why doesn't he dig into the mystery of why this case, and no other in the history of McHenry, is so special? "Sincerely, "Ronald J. Wilkins "3208 W. Golfview Terrace "McHenry" (Editor's Note: In recent months alone the Plaindealer (Coniin led on page 11) For Maria's Fans A new book, "ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS" By Maria Heiser published by Adams Press, Chicago, To Sell For $2.50 per Copy, off the Presses in Mid-June. -PRE-PUBLICATION OFFER- SEND $2.00 plus 30' POSTAGE (CASH, CHECK OR MONEY ORDER) To: Maria Heiser, 3104 Victoria Ave., McHenry, III. 60050 with coupon below for a Per­ sonalized, Autographed Book. OFFER GOOD TIL JULY 1 st--ALLOW 2 WKS. FOR DELIVERY PRINT PLAINLY PLEASE FIND ENCLOSED $ FOR COPIES s. I OF YOUR BOOK "ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS" I AUTOGRAPHED BY YOU. I NAME ADDRESS CITY ZIP. ( ~\