Saturday, October 26, 2013

In the Wake of the News:
Private Covenants

A story I posted here, In the Wake of the News, needs a correction. I said that the Village of Round Lake passed a zoning ordinance restricting the use of watercraft on Wooster Lake. And that Kirk Denz then reciprocated by getting a state law passed to overturn these zoning ordinances. That is not quite correct. Denz obtained a clarification of the law from Springfield, which had the effect of overturning the zoning ordinances.

This is important because the story revolves around a Declaration of Conditions, Covenants and Restrictions (DCCR) -- or more simply put, a homeowners covenant -- between residents of Wooster Lake. The basic issue, as I see it, is over how and by whom are these covenants enforced.

Denz has subsequently filed a lawsuit against the homeowners association, Wooster Lake Conservation & Control Association (WLCCA). One statement alleged in the suit leapt out when I read it. One year prior to the Round Lake zoning ordinance, Deputies on August 6, 2004
"... arrived at the Petitioner's home in a Lake County Sheriff's squad car while fully uniformed, waved a provided copy of the WLCCA DCCR's in the faces of Petitioner Kirk Denz and his guest Jim Murray, repeatedly threatening ticket and arrest ..."
DENZ VS WOOSTER LAKE CONSERVATION

My immediate question was: On whose authority were Lake County Sheriff Deputies sent to enforce a homeowners covenant? These covenants are basically legal agreements between homeowners and have no statutory force.

Not too long ago, the political career of a Lake County State Senator was cut short when it was revealed that she requested inappropriate favors of the Lake County Sheriff's Department. Is there a mindset among some elected Lake County officials that the Sheriff's Department is their private police force?

To my knowledge, this incident with Kirk Denz was never investigated by the State's Attorney or the press.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The incident referred to in the article occurred in August 2004. Lt. Scottberg of the Sheriff's Dept. wrote up a report which alluded to his Officers and the covenants of the lake but really didn't tell the story of what HIS officers had done with these covenants and restrictions. Denz's and Murray's statements as well as a witnessing neighbor's testimony all reflect this Department was "influenced" to utilize the covenants at that time and the Lieutenant was not telling the whole story in his report.

It is worth noting the Lake County Sheriff's Dept. by February 2012 had improved its procedures. Chief Deputy Parker for example had written Wooster Lake is:

"an open lake by the laws of Illinois"

This while covenants and restrictions of the lake remain recorded at Lake County Recorder of Deeds.

Anonymous said...

Also worth noting is this same Lt. Scottberg of the Lake County Sheriff's Dept. in May 2005 distributed an email with a false legal opinion that a neighboring village could adopt an ordinance to restrict largely Ingleside-Wooster Lake. At the time of this false legal opinion, Illinois State law prohibited any type of extraterritorial zoning of private properties beyond municipal borders.

This Lake County Lieutenant seemed much more interested in appeasing the Lake County Board Member's interests rather than just enforcing the law like he was supposed to.

Interview Wooster Liars said...

Eye on Lake County should interview the officials at Tanneron Bay and at Holiday Park and other associations around Wooster Lake who insist to tell on the internet, in Bylaws, in Declarations recorded at the county that the private properties of Wooster Lake are somehow regulated with special restrictions.

Get them on record why they still advertise this lie!

Anonymous said...

https://app.sugarsync.com/wf/D2932044_289_67797560

Read the signed letters from Attorney Richard Nakon and the Illinois Dept of Natural Resources.

RESTRICTIONS ON WOOSTER LAKE ARE ILLEGAL.

Anonymous said...

Here are current links to attorney Nakon's statement that the recordings purporting restrictions are bogus documents:

http://nebula.wsimg.com/e965d51c07a58142dadafd4bdecadb6b?AccessKeyId=3620C4390AF9701853B0&disposition=0&alloworigin=1

and to the IDNR's opinion of the real, legal use of Wooster Lake, absent of any restrictions.

http://nebula.wsimg.com/267ef7af2d489973c35c57e74704b74e?AccessKeyId=3620C4390AF9701853B0&disposition=0&alloworigin=1