Hinsdale Panel 'Overstepping' Authority"?

HINSDALE, IL — A key Hinsdale committee that has not met for more than two months is holding up real estate development, which could hurt the village's economy, a resident told the Village Board recently. He suggested the committee may be overstepping its authority.

At last week's board meeting, Andrew Grieve, a Hinsdale resident, said he has been trying to get the Historical Preservation Commission to approve his family's designs to build a house on the vacant property on South Elm Street. But the commission hasn't met since early March. Grieve said he wasn't the only person whose project is being held up.

In response, village officials said the commission's chairman, John Bohnen, has canceled two meetings so far during the pandemic because he prefers hearings actually be in public, rather than held remotely like the Village Board.

During public input, Grieve, who now lives on Bruner Street, said the commission has canceled two meetings without giving an official reason. He said his family hired a decorated local architect to design a home that is "timeless in character and entirely consistent with Hinsdale's architectural charm."

Grieve noted the village was considering a moratorium on the demolition of historic homes, which became a topic of discussion shortly before the pandemic. But he said his property had no linkage to a historic home. In such cases, the commission gives its feedback on building plans, but has no authority to change them.

Grieve said it was likely the commission was canceling meetings to defer development of properties over which it has no binding authority.

"This, of course, in my opinion, would be a blatant use of power," Grieve told the board. "To hold families and their finances hostage indefinitely is an egregious overstep of its statutory authority and not congruent with the state's mission for the HPC."

By holding up development, Grieve said, the commission would hurt Hinsdale's economy by driving potential developers elsewhere. With less demand for local real estate, he said, that would likely mean dropping property values.

"If the HPC stands paralyzed for 90-plus days, I would argue that it should forfeit its right to express an opinion on the design of people's homes," he said.

Village President Tom Cauley said he has typically left it up to committee chairmen to determine when they hold meetings. The historic commission's chairman, he said, believes public hearings cannot effectively be done over the phone. But he noted Grieve's situation required only a meeting, not a public hearing, because it did not involve a historic home.

One of the village trustees said the village should see to it that the next commission meeting be held in June.

Cauley said the village is taking the issue seriously.

"This is not a game we're playing," he said. "We have the intention that all committees and commissions will open."