Darien Resident's RV Sparks Opposition, May Be Rejected

DARIEN, IL – A Darien resident with an RV parked in her driveway is violating the city code, prompting opposition from at least one neighbor, according to city documents.

Cynthia Haney, who lives in the 1000 block of Juniper Lane in the Brookhaven Manor subdivision, is requesting an exception to city regulations.

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The city allows RVs to be parked on paved surfaces in back and side yards, but not in the front.

The city's Plan Commission and a City Council committee have unanimously rejected the request. Officials said they wanted to avoid setting a precedent.

The full council takes up the issue at its meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday at City Hall.

In May, a code enforcement officer saw a 25-foot camper trailer parked in the front.

In letters to the city, Haney has said several factors made parking the RV on the side and back impractical.

She said her parents bought the house in 1967. She contended that mature pine trees on both sides of the driveway largely screen the RV from public view.

"(O)ne of the pine trees would need a significant trim in order for the camper to be parked on the side of the house. At least 15 feet of branches would need to be taken off," Haney wrote. "This could potentially cause a great deal of harm to the pine tree. Furthermore, because my property is a corner lot, there is only one side that the camper could be parked on."

In the backyard, overhead power lines and a shed would prevent parking there, she said.

Emily Polacek, a neighbor down the street, said it makes sense to park the RV in the driveway. She said she, too, owns an RV that cannot be parked in the back or side yards.

"Cindy and I take care of our yards. More so than some other people in the community," Polacek said in an email to city officials. "The RVs are in good working condition and are not eyesores."

Another neighbor down the street, Steven McCarty, opposed an exception. Already, he said, RVs are parked in front of two houses on his street. He asserted that the unsightliness diminishes his home's value.

McCarty also said other unsightliness exists in the neighborhood – an on-the-street basketball hoop across from him and downed trees and overgrowth in a next-door neighbor's yard.

"If we start changing the rules to accommodate things these properties were never designed for, the properties will become what no one ever wants," he said in an email to the city.

The city's staff said the council should place two conditions if it approves the RV request:

• The length of the RV in the driveway can be no longer than 25 feet.
• The exception would be void if the mature pine trees are removed.