Election 2023: Home-rule status for Bull Valley, Lakemoor? Garbage for Algonquin Township?

Voters in Bull Valley, Harvard, Lakemoor and unincorporated Algonquin Township will field referendum questions on their ballots in April.

Both Bull Valley and Lakemoor will be asking voters to grant them home-rule status, which would give the villages new taxing and regulatory powers and grant them greater flexibility than non-home-rule communities.

Algonquin Township is asking for the power to create a garbage and recycling program for unincorporated areas, and the city of Harvard wants to increase the local sales tax to raise money for road projects.

Bull Valley

Bull Valley Village President Emily Berendt pointed to the Thompson Road Farm, a new historic district and community center, and roadwork in a recent news release as reasons for asking for home-rule status.

The 324-acre Thompson Road Farm is set to be added to the village’s park system and restored to its natural state through a public-private partnership involving the village, the Land Conservancy of McHenry County and the Bull Valley Riding Club.

The park will become “the crown jewel of the village park system,” Berendt said in the release.

Berendt also pointed to “Living With the Land,” a plan developed by graduate students and faculty of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago that will result in a historic district and community center, and the village’s roads, which in “spite of extensive road resurfacing done in the past 10 years” still need work, and some of which are not eligible for the federal grants the village has used in the past.

“In the face of shrinking state funding, [the] increased cost of maintaining operations and these special opportunities that have presented themselves, the village hopes that becoming home rule will permit the village to obtain some alternative revenue streams other than property taxes to help meet current and future expenses,” Berendt said.

Home-rule authority would allow the village to increase its sales tax beyond the current 1% maximum and levy other sorts of taxes, including on entertainment, gas, telecommunications and utilities. The village also no longer would be subject to the state law capping how much taxing bodies can increase their property tax levy by each year.

The Village Board has discussed the possibility of contractor registrations and road impact fees for developers, Berendt said in an email.

The goal is to finance the “Living With the Land” and Thompson Road Farm projects through grants and private donations, and then for the “Living With the Land” project to be self-sustaining once complete, she said. Home-rule authority also would allow the village to negotiate more favorable terms with contractors in developing these projects.

Lakemoor

The village of Lakemoor is looking for new revenue to cover police pension payments and, therefore, also is pursuing home-rule status, Village Administrator Todd Weihofen told the Daily Herald.

The village is looking at a 1% gas tax, but nothing has been determined, Weihofen said. The Village Board also plans to enact an ordinance to keep the property tax levy within the non-home-rule tax cap as an assurance to residents.

Home-rule status also would allow the village to enter into development agreements, giving it more leverage when dealing with large-scale developers, Weihofen said.

Harvard

The city of Harvard once again is asking its voters for permission to increase the local sales tax so that it can tackle more miles of roadwork each year.

The city receives about $220,000 from the gas tax each year, which has covered the resurfacing of about a mile of city streets each year.

A pavement management report by Infrastructure Management Services, presented to the city’s transportation committee last year, showed 65% of Harvard’s public streets were in very poor to serious condition. Another 21% are rated as poor, with just less than 4% of streets rated as good.

The backlog of needed roadwork has an estimated repair cost of about $57 million, according to the report.

Voters turned down the same request during the June 28 primary, with about 64% of residents voting no.

Algonquin Township

Almost 90% of Algonquin Township residents already receive garbage pickup through the town they live in, but the remaining 10% – or more than 3,700 homes – live on unincorporated roads and can choose from four companies.

That means as many as 12 garbage trucks per week drive up and down the same roads, Township Supervisor Randy Funk said in the last township newsletter.

“As our county continues to grow, traffic congestion and road maintenance become more and more challenging and even more expensive to taxpayers,” Funk said, adding that having a common carrier for unincorporated areas is “a win-win for everyone.”

Funk also pointed to the potential for lower prices, noting that many residents pay up to 2.5 times more than their neighbors who live in a municipality. He said the township also could implement a discount program for older residents.

Additionally, the township could pursue a larger variety of services, including the removal of recyclables, yard waste and large items plus shred events and Christmas tree recycling, he said.

Daily Herald reporter Mick Zawislak contributed to this report.