A 315-acre tract containing an area that environmentalists call ”last true wilderness” in Dundee Township was annexed into the Village of West Dundee this week and is slated for a residential and commercial development.
Officials say the plans of Haeger Industries of East Dundee for 922 single-family homes and condominiums on the property along Illinois Highway 31 will increase the town`s population of 4,000 by 50 percent over the next 15 years.
Several environmental groups asked the village to require a 200-foot setback for riverfront condominiums in order to preserve bluffs along the Fox River. The village agreed to a 100-foot setback proposed by the developer.
The plans may be altered, however, if the Kane County Forest Preserve District wins a condemnation suit it has filed seeking ownership of 38 acres of the property that includes the bluffs.
