La Grange Rejects Front Porch Project

LA GRANGE, IL — A resident on Arlington Avenue told La Grange officials that they can keep the town's traditional look yet allow people to modernize their housing. He made that argument as he asked the village board to let him to build a second floor over his front porch.

However, a majority of the village board rejected resident Theodore Hadley's request for an exemption from the zoning code. Members said they did not want to set a precedent that could end up altering the town's character.

Hadley and his wife, Andrea Hadley, live on a corner lot at Arlington and Dover Avenue. It is smaller than most. They wanted to expand their master bedroom and closet. As part of the request, Hadley agreed to a rule barring him from enclosing the porch with glass.

In January, the village's zoning board voted 3-1 for Hadley's request. But Hadley needed four votes in favor for the zoning board's decision to be considered a positive recommendation.

Hadley noted the project would not increase the house's footprint in any way.

"I grew up in this village. I have lived in this house for 30 years," Hadley told the board Monday. "I have spent a significant amount of time creating vitality for the community, not creating an eyesore. I'm trying to modernize a 100-year-old house."

Trustee Bill Holder said he had a hard time seeing that Hadley had no alternative to an exemption from the village code. He suggested Hadley reconfigure the layout of the second floor, which is what the trustee said he did.

Trustee Mark Kuchler, who was appointed village president later in the meeting, said the issue was a "close call."

"I, by no means, want to signal to the zoning board of appeals that they need to be willing to grant more variances. We need to be going the other way," he said.

Hadley told the trustees that keeping La Grange's housing stock up to date is an "admirable" goal.

"I don't think every house lines up and has the same setback," Hadley said. "There are various setbacks. That's what makes our village unique. It makes it not look like a modern subdivision with the same setbacks."

Trustee David McCarty disputed the suggestion that building above a porch was a second-floor addition. Rather, he considered it a two-story expansion.

"I understand modernizing a house," he said. "That's part of the challenge of living in an older community. I won't be able to support this."

McCarty, Holder and Beth Augustine voted against the exemption, while Kuchler, Michael Kotynek and Lou Gale supported it. Under state law, Village President Tom Livingston, whose planned resignation took place later in the meeting, was barred from voting to break the tie.

"Let's see if we can find a way," Livingston told Hadley. "I appreciate the attempt. We'll move on."

Documents related to Hadley's proposal were a part of the village board's meeting packet.