A controversial application to open a truck dealership in Gurnee has been withdrawn.
A large group of residents attended Monday’s Village Board meeting to oppose the development on Route 21, near the HeatherRidge neighborhood, but instead learned from Mayor Tom Hood that TransChicago Truck Group had withdrawn its application to change the zoning of the property and that, for now, it is no longer seeking approval for the dealership.
Dozens voiced their objections to the project at the board’s Nov. 14 meeting.
Hood said TransChicago Truck Group could reapply in the future, but would have to start the process over from scratch.
“A petitioner can withdraw their application anytime during the process, pursuant to ordinance, and they can then begin the process over again, which means that they’d have to go through the Planning and Zoning Board, and give notice to the public,” he said. “They then would have to go to the Village Board again, and go through that entire process with publication.”
The proposed development would have been located on 26 acres along Route 21, and consisted of an office, a retail area that would be used as a dealership, a parts warehouse and a maintenance facility.
The site, which was chosen for its easy access to Interstate 94, was near the HeatherRidge and Spinney Run subdivisions, which are residential areas in the village, leading many residents of the subdivisions to express their opposition to the development.
The company received approval from the village’s Planning and Zoning Board at its Oct. 12 meeting.
It’s not known if the trucking group plans to reapply. Repeated attempts to reach a spokesman for TransChicago Truck Group were unsuccessful.
Hood said that TransChicago Truck Group did request a continuance, which would have postponed the vote to a future meeting, but that request was denied.
“We wanted to have it heard tonight if it was going to be heard,” the mayor said. “They needed more time pursuant to their letter to prepare, and tonight they weren’t able to be ready.”
Although the company withdrew its petition, Hood complimented TransChicago Truck Group on its dealings with the village.
“I want to recognize the petitioner, and say that their presentation to provide information to us has been excellent,” he said. “They’ve been responsive to the village, and between the staff and the board itself, they’ve done a really great job at providing information and have been cooperative with us.
“I don’t want in any way to provide or indicate that they’ve done a poor job, because they haven’t,” Hood continued “They’ve done a really good job.”
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He also complimented residents for their “responsiveness and politeness” during the process.
“I’ve experienced numerous emails, numerous telephone calls, in-person visits,” Hood said. “I’ve gotten to know many of you much better than I did before. I’m really pleased with the residents of Gurnee that you’ve shown yourself in an issue that I know is emotional to you. The interactions from the village residents have been informative.
“This is how a democratic village works, in terms of everybody getting an opportunity to share their ideas,” Hood said.
The residents who were in opposition of the development took the time to celebrate their organization in voicing their opposition, and their success in speaking up for their subdivisions.
“This is a model of what can happen when you do things the right way,” Gurnee resident Art Stevens said. “When you’re courteous, when you pay attention to what the topics are, when you get your information together, when you consider all sides and when you try to have discussion points that take into account all of the things that are trying to be accomplished.”
Stevens continued to say that the residents will continue to remain engaged on future issues as well.
“It’s not easy for a village the size of Gurnee to figure out what the right path is,” Stevens said. “There are now a lot of us that are much more aware of the complexities and future plans. There’s still a lot for the village to do. We’re not standing in the way of that, but we have to find a way to help with that so that everybody gets some of what they want out of that.”