Shorewood Glen Resident: Size Doesn't Matter

The developers of Shorewood Glen convinced village leaders to let them construct smaller houses in the popular development despite outcry from a couple homeowners at least week's meeting.

But neither one of the complaining homeowners owns a home in Shorewood Glen.

Another two Shorewood residents who do live in the 55-and-over Shorewood Glen community also spoke during last week's meeting in support of allowing smaller homes of about 1,200 square feet to be built there, and the measure has gained support in the days since.

"I for one welcome the manor homes and frankly I have not personally heard any negative comments about them from any residents here in Shorewood Glen," said Walter Anderson, who has lived in the development for about four years but was not at last week's meeting.

"I believe that they will be an asset to the community I live in and to the Village of Shorewood. They fill a niche that Shorewood currently does not have and in my opinion they are not objectionable in any way," Anderson said.

Anderson said he lived in a larger house in Shorewood for about 14 years before he and his wife downsized for a home in Shorewood Glen, which features many amenities for active older people.

But while Anderson and James Lynch, who attended last week's meeting, were in favor of developer Pulte/Del Webb constructing the smaller Manor homes on 71 plots, father and son Shorewood residents Jim and Kevin Blackburn, were against it.

"This village has tried to upgrade things. In my opinion, now they're trying to downgrade them," said Jim Blackburn, who lives on Madiera Drive.

"This has been a lot of political nonsense," he said, contending that the smaller houses "lowers property values" and leads to a "spiral downward."

"God help us," Jim Blackburn said.

His son, Kevin Blackburn, lives in the undeveloped Towne Center near Village Hall. But Kevin Blackburn insisted his desolate, unfinished neighborhood was preferable to living by the small Manor homes of Shorewood Glen.

"Empty mounds are far superior to their inferior, unwanted product," Kevin Blackburn said.

Anderson pointed out that he and his wife, who has since passed away, moved to Shorewood Glen because they no longer wanted or needed a big house but did wish to remain in the village.

"The residents contribute to Shorewood in the form of real estate taxes, the majority (of the money) going to the schools and we have no children in Shorewood Glen that attend school," Anderson said. "We pay the same taxes to the village but being a private community do not utilize the village’s street repairs or snow plowing, etc. The residents spend money in the stores and increase the Village share of sales tax."

 And Anderson said he values his Shorewood Glen neighbors, no matter how big or small their houses may be.

"One big plus I can tell you about is the people," he said. "If I had to buy the people who live around me, I could never find people as nice as I have for neighbors."