Wednesday, October 23, 2013

In the Wake of the News

The government may have been shut down for 16 days, but there is an ongoing conflict closer to home in Ingleside that has been going strong for more than a decade. The conflict is over the sort of watercraft that are acceptable on Wooster Lake, and is an example of what happens when environmental concerns go against individual property rights. It is also an example of how political clout is wielded in Lake County.

The story appeared in the newspapers as recently as 2011 when the Daily Herald reported that ...
Round Lake village board members have repealed a nearly 6-year-old ordinance that limited boat speed on a private lake. Under a staff recommendation agreed to by the village board, property owners along Wooster Lake are now responsible for settling their differences and deciding whether to have no-wake restrictions for the roughly 100-acre body of water.
One side had obtained a municipal zoning ordinance to get their way.  The other side reciprocated by getting a state law changed to overturn the zoning ordinance. The News-Sun reported that ...
Wooster Lake is back to being wide open for boats to travel at any speed after a Round Lake ordinance was rescinded last month. The controversy on the lake goes back many years and resulted in state legislation to allow boat owners to accelerate their boats beyond the no-wake limit that some area residents wanted to impose on the 100-acre lake off Route 134.
In what may be the latest skirmish in the battle, a small claims suit has been filed in Lake County Court.

DENZ VS WOOSTER LAKE CONSERVATION
The complainants charge that restrictive covenants from a Wooster Lake homeowner association filed with the Lake County Recorder of Deeds have slandered the reputation of their neighborhood, and have negatively impacted their property values. The claim is for a judgment of $5000.

To my knowledge, this development has not been covered by any of the newspapers. I will watch the case and post updates.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

EOLC should do some fact checking as some of the statements in this article appear to be misleading.

1. An environmental study has NEVER been done to warrant restrictions. Never.

2. Legislative documents submitted by attorneys to the State during Hearings indicate the the law was not changed, rather merely clarified to clearly reflect the limitations of local government as they already existed
3. Ordinance 2001-52 was never rescinded. Also, just to be clear, the NewsSun article was written in Aug 2011, 1 month after the recission, so 05-O-27 was rescinded in late June 2011 (not "a month ago" from today.)

Fish Tales at Wooster constitutes fraud said...

The Illinois Department of Resources released a signed statement on IDNR stationary dated 10-23-2013 writing:

"I have been asked to provide information regarding recreational boating restrictions on Wooster Lake, as it relates to the IDNR Conservation Police.

Beyond the regulations found in the Illinois Boat Registration and Safety Act (which applies to all waters of the state), the IDNR does not have any administrative rules; currently and to my knowledge previously, that impose any recreational boating restrictions on Wooster Lake. This includes a no wake restriction."

But if you were to ask Bonnie Thomson Carter or those who tell Fish Tales around Wooster with their "Declarations" or "Bylaws" or "Ordinances" adopted by village politicians, their rules somehow supercede the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

Anonymous said...

This link is to a letter to the editor published by the Daily Herald.

Realizing the IDNRs historical view of Wooster Lake regarding rules & restrictions, is this opinion provided one from a "lady" or - as Chevy Chase would say of Jane Curtain - one from an "ignorant sl*t"?

You be the judge.

www.dailyherald.com/article/20110626/discuss/706269921/