Neighbor News
Editorial: Cook County Commissioners Shouldn't Play Favorites in Local Land Disputes
Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin fears precedent-setting vote
As Cook County Commissioners, we cannot pit one town against another and ignore local control, but unfortunately that’s what’s happening in southwest suburban Lemont where the potential involvement of the Cook County Forest Preserve in a local land dispute has widespread implications, not only threatening municipal home-rule authority but the very future of unspoiled forest preserve land.
This controversial plan, which Cook County Forest Preserve Commissioners are poised to approve at their Oct. 6 meeting, calls for Palos Park to annex nearly 2,000 acres of private, undeveloped land surrounded by Lemont, which would then likely be sold to developers to build commercial and high-density housing.
But Palos Park first needs the Forest Preserve Commissioners to sign off on allowing it to annex 140 acres of county Forest Preserve property, creating a land bridge that would connect that it to the 2,000 acres of private land.
This would set two dangerous precedents. In voting for the land grab, Commissioners would favor one municipality over another and circumvent Lemont’s local control authority, rendering it powerless over land development decisions within its own community. Palos Park’s plan to allow for uncontrolled growth on the acquired land would place additional stress on local schools and public safety services, resulting in tax increases.
In addition, environmentalists are opposing this nefarious arrangement, arguing Commissioners would send a loud-and-clear message that if you have money and political influence, Forest Preserve property is for sale.
Once Commissioners grant an exception like this one and squander sacrosanct land to greedy developers, when will it end? Your town may be next.
If county Commissioners intend to serve the interests of their constituents, we must resist overstepping boundaries in choosing one municipality over another, deciding development decisions for communities without local input, while ensuring we preserve and protect forest preserve land for everyone.
Cook County Commissioner Richard R. Boykin, 1st District
