Officials for both the village of Homer Glen and Homer Township will hold separate special meetings Friday to vote on a formal objection to plans for a nondestructive hydro-excavation company on 159th Street in unincorporated Will County.
Badger Daylighting Corporation is seeking a zoning change to build and operate on about 38 vacant acres on the north side of 159th Street, near South Leach Drive in the western portion of Homer Township. The village of Homer Glen abuts the north property line.
The company, which has locations across the United States and Canada, wants to build an office and park 35 to 40 trucks on site, most of which will be under a roof, according to a proposal submitted to Will County. The company is looking to move its Channahon location to a bigger site, and the business may generate between 80 and 120 vehicle trips per day, according to county documents.
Residents attended both the Homer Township meeting Monday and the Homer Glen meeting Wednesday to protest the project, which they said could bring increased truck traffic near their homes, more noise and dust and affect their well system, which they rely on for water.
Their concerns led to the special meetings on Friday to submit objections to the Will County Board, which will review the plan over the next month.
The Will County Planning and Zoning Commission will hold a public hearing Tuesday for the project, and the County Board could vote June 18.
“This type of development does not belong in our community,” Joyce Hale, a resident of the Cedar Glen subdivision, told the Homer Glen Village Board Wednesday.
Hale said she is concerned about the company’s use of well water since its trucks can hold 1,300 gallons of water each. That could affect the water table and wells used by nearby residents in Cedar Glen, Windmill Estates and houses south of 159th Street, she said.
Hale also cited increased truck traffic, congestion, disruption to homeowners, industrial noise and light pollution as other reasons the boards should oppose the plan.
“The development should make sense for this area and align with the long-term development of 159th Street,” Hale said. “Our community deserves better than having a heavy industrial trucking company operating in our backyard.”
Resident Rick Plebanski said the company doesn’t fit in with the rural nature of the community. He said the business would disturb wildlife and the coyotes, deer and birds that reside near Fiddyment Creek. Residents moved to Homer Glen and Homer Township for less traffic and to enjoy the quiet, rural area, he said.
Approving a more intensive zoning would start a chain reaction for other vacant parcels nearby, he said.
“No berm is tall enough to reduce noise,” Plebanski said.
Kevin North, general manger for Badger’s Upper Midwest region, told the township board the company wouldn’t have pursued the opportunity if they felt there would be any damage to the wildlife or surrounding neighborhoods.
The company has plans for noise and light abatement and does not plan to disrupt the water table, he said. The company has a third party service that refuels the trucks at night, and could provide an estimated $175,000 a year in fuel tax revenue, he said.
Some of the land that is not needed for the project may be sold to the Will County Forest Preserve District, and there are talks about annexing into Homer Glen, North said.
Homer Glen Trustee Robert Schaller said village and township opposition to the project “sends a unified message to Will County that the people who actually live here reject this zoning.”
Schaller said development has to be consistent with the vision of the community.
“An industrial truck yard at 159th Street is not that vision,” he said.
Homer Township Supervisor Sue Steilen said she wants to make sure residents are protected. She said she was concerned about the truck routes, especially since some nearby roads, such as Gouger Road and 151st Street, have 7-ton weight limits.
Steilen and Homer Glen Mayor Christina Neitzke-Troike both said rezoning the area for the business could create a domino effect for the rest of the corridor.
If the boards formally oppose the project, it would require a 3/4 vote of the County Board to be approved, Homer Glen attorney Michael Pasquinelli said.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
