MWRD Votes To Allow Easement For Road Through Canal Shores

WILMETTE, IL — A Glencoe real estate developer scored his first significant victory in his years-long effort to build a road to a landlocked parcel of land his family purchased close to 30 years ago, as the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District granted an easement on his behalf. MWRD commissioners narrowly voted Thursday to give the Cook County Highway Department a 75-year easement to build a road over part of the 10th hold at Canal Shores Golf Course in Wilmette.

The agreement allows for a 426-foot-long and 60-foot-wide road from Maple Avenue to the Keefe's 1.1 acres of land, which has been dubbed "Fairway Oaks." Representatives of the Wilmette Park District, which currently leases the land in question from the water district, said they are considering suing the MWRD for breaking the terms of the lease, according to Wilmette Life.

In a 5-4 vote, Board members Kenneth Dunkin, Martin Durkan, Barbara McGowan, Kari Steele and David Walsh approved the easement. Members Frank Avila, Josina Morita, Mariyana Spyropolous and Debra Shore opposed it, Pioneer Press reported.

Supporters of the easement said the village of Wilmette and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers should handle road permitting, while opponents warned it would create a dangerous precedent to grant public land for a private property owner at taxpayer expense.

The Canal Shores course has been operated by the municipalities of Evanston and Wilmette through a lease agreement with the MWRD. It has been run as a community golf course since 1919. Representatives of the course have argued the area proposed for paving contains environmentally sensitive wetlands and century-old trees.

Several commissioners explained their votes at the Nov. 15 meeting.

McGowan, the vice president of the board, said she had received hundreds of emails, the majority of which were respectful and decent.

"A few of them were threatening if I didn't vote the way they wanted me to vote," McGowan said. "So I can not and will not give anyone that power. I'm here because of a greater power. My vote is yes."

Steele thanked residents and said it was the "most action" the board had seen in a while. She said the terms of the lease had anticipated the possibility of a road to be built, and the Cook County Department of Transportation had properly requested permission.

"Denying that would set a dangerous precedent of intergovernmental dysfunction that I'm just not sure I want to be a part of," Steele said. There are still many hurdles for the project to pass before the road can be built, she said. "I also know with all of the lawyers, public affairs professionals and lobbyists that are involved in this issue, this is just the first step of their strategy, which is an issue that will most likely need to be settled in court."

Dunkin also voted "yes." He said the easement was "very, very much in compliance with what's gone on throughout the history of this agency by allowing other government entities to make a decision whether they take action of easement and other matter."

"This easement goes against our mission and policy," said Avila, the board's finance chair. "I support an open green space and public use of land along the North Shore Channel and no expense to taxpayers." Morita also said the request goes against the MWRD's mission.

Shore thanked members of the community for attending the board meetings. She pointed out the board had unanimously adopted a policy of keeping all lands along the North Shore Channel open for green space and public use and granting the easement would be a "dangerous precedent" that would guarantee a lawsuit and go against the public interest.

"There's no question this is one of the gnarliest issues that I've had to deal with on my time on the board and it's not exactly central to our mission but we don't always get to decide which issues concern the people we serve," Shore said. "This easement request, if granted, will result in the expenditure of hundreds of thousands of dollars, possibly much more, by Cook County taxpayers and the water reclamation district will receive a payment of $10."

At a rally protesting the easement Sunday, demonstrators called on Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle to block the easement and Evanston Mayor Steve Hagerty said he and the City Council were strongly opposed to granting the easement.

“The problem was that the land owner could not maximize their profit, from their perspective, and build four homes,” Hagerty said, according to the Daily Northwestern. “Let me be very clear: It is not government’s job to maximize a private owner’s profit.”

The Keefe family has had the support of a powerful ally, Senate President John Cullerton. The Chicago Democrat joined Keefe last year to lobby then-Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl and Ald. Eleanor Revelle to grant a separate easement through Isabella Woods from the Evanston side of the golf course. Cullerton has represented Keefe and has an ownership interest in the Dick Keefe Development Corporation.

A concept known as "easement by necessity" requires public bodies that collect property taxes to allow property owners to access their land. The Keefe family argues they are unable to do so.

Following a decade-long dispute over another easement that concluded with a September 2015 Illinois Supreme Court decision, the MWRD shelled out more than $44 million of taxpayer money to developers of the Ritz-Carlton Residences along Chicago's Magnificent Mile.

UPDATES:

Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin released a statement Thursday following the vote. It said he had refrained from commenting prior to the vote but sought to clarify several issues:

1. The land is owned by the MWRD and the Board of Commissioners of the MWRD is the only governmental body that can determine its use.

2. The land is covered by a lease that is in full force and effect between the MWRD and the Wilmette Park District.

3. The County’s role, up to this point, has been ministerial in following the lease’s requirements for an easement request.

4. I am disappointed that the Board of Commissioners of the MWRD granted the easement and that they did not put environmental protections in their authorization for the easement.

Now the County will have to provide environmental protections including restricting the size of the construction, restricting the type of construction and cost allocation. The County will begin negotiating with the land owner an agreement that includes all safeguards. This negotiation will take some time and when completed, will be presented to the Cook County Board of Commissioners for action. But before the County Board acts, all building and zoning requirements of the Village of Wilmette will have to be satisfied.

Stacey Meyers, senior counsel of the conservation group Openlands, also issued a statement in response to the vote:

Openlands is deeply disappointed that the District Board approved an easement that rolls back legacy riverfront protections for the North Shore Channel. This takes us in the wrong direction – it’s contrary to the commitment by the District and its partners in revitalizing Chicago’s rivers. As a landowner, this vote is a lost opportunity to affirm the District commitment to making Chicago’s second shoreline healthy, vibrant and accessible. We are also saddened that Isabella Woods, such a community treasure of an old oak grove, will be laid to waste by this project. We commend those commissioners, including President Spyropoulos, who voted in favor of protecting the river and community resource.

The Canal Shores Golf Course released a statement Friday:

On November 15, the MWRD Board voted 5-4 to approve the request for an easement on the 10th hole of Canal Shores Golf Course that will pave the way for construction of a 426-foot-long road for the benefit of a politically-connected landowner. While this vote is a stunning setback and sets a dangerous precedent by permitting the use of public land for private benefit, this is only the first step in a much larger battle, one that is not over yet. Canal Shores has been around for 100 years, and we will fight to ensure it is around for another 100 years.
We are grateful and humbled by the outpouring of support from golfers, neighbors, conservationists and countless others who oppose construction of a roadway at public expense for the sole benefit of a private developer.

The Village of Wilmette released the following statement in response to the vote:

The Village has learned that the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) approved an easement to Cook County by a vote of 5-4 to build a road across the tenth hole of the Canal Shores Golf Course. We recognize many residents are concerned about this issue and appreciate all of the messages we’ve received. The Village of Wilmette’s responsibility in this manner is to evaluate requests for zoning and land use for new construction. While we understand that residents are eager to learn the Village’s position on this matter, the Village Board is legally required to evaluate any proposal in an open, public process and make a decision based on the evidence presented.
Presently, no application has been filed with the Village covering this property. If and when an application and plans are received, the Village will provide notice to the public, including making available any application materials and plans on the Village website. At this time, the Village has no additional information as to what the owners’ specific plans will be for the property. As is always the case, the Village is committed to an open and transparent process which will provide all materials to the public and include multiple opportunities for public input.

Related:

• Taxpayers Would Pay $500,000 To Pave 10th Fairway: Canal Shores
• Canal Shores Golf Course Board Adamantly Opposes Proposed Roadway
• MWRD Board Rejects Isabella Woods Easement Request