La Grange trustees plan to take a detailed look at a proposal to create an affordable housing task force when it meets April 13, analyzing what the body would look like and what legal powers it would have.
“Illinois statute requires 10% of our (housing) stock to be affordable,” Trustee Beth Augustine, sponsor of the proposed task force along with colleagues Glenn Thompson and Shawana McGee, said when the Village Board discussed the proposal in March. “La Grange is currently in compliance and will hopefully stay that way, but new developments may chip away at it.”
“Formulating a task force and/or conducting a housing needs assessment” is one of the stated goals listed in the village’s 2024 comprehensive plan, to “further support housing affordability.”
The board will present a detailed report on the initiative at its April meeting.
Augustine said the proposal would not be taking a position on the issue of affordable housing, “it asks only that we create a task force,” which would be resident-led, with people representing various parts of La Grange.
Village President Mark Kuchler was skeptical.
He defended the village’s efforts on affordable housing, pointing out that about 13% of La Grange’s housing stock meets the affordable housing threshold and that previous boards “had worked hard to make sure we exceeded that 10%. He said La Grange should be recognized as a leader in the western suburbs in affordable housing, pointing to Uptown Apartments and Mason Point as examples.
“What village is doing more?” he asked.
Kuchler also stressed that the village was active in supporting the BEDS Plus facility for the chronically homeless at 9601 E. Ogden Ave.
Kuchler also said he would prefer creating an advisory council as opposed to a task force, pointing out that such a body could work with developers in creating housing to meet different demographics. An eight-flat is cheaper to build than eight single-family residences, he said, and “we do not need a task force to tell us that that’s less expensive.”
After some back and forth between Kuchler and Augustine over intra-board communication on the issue, Augustine noted that an email sent to board members addressed the need for debate on issues.
“What I’m hopeful is that some of these things you’ve raised can be discussed with this group whether it’s a task force or some other name,” she said.
Other trustees were unclear as to the specifics of the proposed task force.
“I am not quite sure what we’re being asked for a decision,” Peggy Peterson said. “If we’re taking a straw poll … are we interested in creating a group of citizens to support this? I would support that.”
Lou Gale supported the idea of creating a task force, but like Peterson, was unclear about the details.
“How many members will it have,” asked. “How are we going to pick those members? Is it going to be a line out the door, the first 10 throughout the door? Is it going to have a budget of some kind?”
Glenn Thompson thought Kuchler’s idea of just focusing on developers was “an attempt to kill this whole process. That’s just how I feel about it.”
About a dozen people spoke in favor of creating a housing task force, during public comment, with none opposing the idea.
Kurt Volkman, chairperson of the Village’s design review commission, said he supported creating a housing task force, noting that current state and federal legislative proposals could limit local municipalities’ ability to guide their own development.
Becky Lorentzen, from the Community Diversity Group, also spoke in favor of a task force.
“Affordable housing is essential to sustaining a vibrant and inclusive and resilient community,” she said. “CDG shares concerns articulated by community members in the 2024 La Grange Forward Comprehensive Plan regarding affordability and supports the proposal of a housing task force to assess the needs of housing in the village.”
Peg Moster, of the La Grange Area League of Women Voters and chair of its housing committee, said the League had participated in creating the task force proposal, but its report was omitted from the meeting’s materials.
“The actual housing task force proposal that was drafted by the League and Trustee Augustine and sent to the Board was not actually attached to tonight’s agenda,” she said during public comment. “Instead the La Grange Forward Comprehensive Plan was attached, along with a cover memo citing Chapter 3 of the Plan.”
Moster stressed that the report was prepared by Augustine, McGee and Thompson would have “helped those attending, and watching from home, to better understand the proposal.
Afterwards Moster said in an email that Kuchler’s comments about fair housing in La Grange amounted to “fear-mongering” and “His citation of the BEDS development, which is for a targeted population of unhoused who can never support themselves in the community was particularly egregious.”
In a telephone interview, Moster elaborated.
“He (Kuchler) doesn’t seem to make a distinction between what is affordable and what is not affordable,” she said. “If he wants to say that BEDS was an accomplishment, yes but it was for a specific population. We’re talking about a general population and an inability of seniors to stay in the community, an inability for children who were raised in the community and went off to start their careers now want to return and have families raised in the same community they were raised in.”
Kuchler responded, also in a telephone interview.
“I’m very proud of what prior boards have done in regards to both diversifying our housing stock and adding affordable housing,” he said.
As for the charge that BEDS Plus was not the point of a proposed housing task force, Kuchler said “How do you have an affordable housing conversation and not discuss BEDS Plus?”
The issue of a proposed housing task force will again be before the La Grange Village Board 7:30 p.m. April 13 at La Grange Village Hall, 53 S. La Grange Road.
Hank Beckman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
