ELLSWORTH – Crossing Meadows development resident Gwen Swanson appeared before the Ellsworth Village Board Monday, April 3 to speak her mind about a covenant she said isn’t being enforced …
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ELLSWORTH – Crossing Meadows development resident Gwen Swanson appeared before the Ellsworth Village Board Monday, April 3 to speak her mind about a covenant she said isn’t being enforced like it should.
Swanson said she moved into the fourth house built in the development; one reason they chose to move there, she said, was because of a covenant in place.
A covenant imposed by developers generally lays out rules on the number of buildings allowed on a lot, the structural materials allowed for building, the size and shape of buildings, and the permissible uses of the land. The intent is to ensure that all homes in the area are roughly the same quality to ensure the economic health of the development. According to an Illinois law firm specializing in covenants, they are generally found in a property’s certificate of title or in a separate document referenced by title certificate.
Swanson said when she bought her house, she received a copy of the covenant from Joe Plummer, who owned the lot along with Jay McGrath.
“New people have moved there and have not received the covenant,” Swanson said. “Who is responsible for regulating it? People are doing what they want to do. We were told we can’t have garbage cans outside, that they have to be in the garage or behind a fence so they’re not visible. People have them sitting out front.”
The self-declared Mayor of Crossing Meadows questioned who should be mowing the cul-de-sac on Janet Court or on McGrath’s two vacant lots and said arguments have arisen with people moving in from Minnesota.
“I’m not afraid to speak up once I get going,” she said. “New people are moving in and they’re not doing what they’re told to do.”
Swanson said she thinks the realtor selling the lot/home and the village should be responsible for giving people an itemized list of what they can do or cannot do in this town. Her complaint also extended to people leaving dog waste in others’ yards, especially people coming over to walk their dogs from Dar Ray Heights.
“You should what Lucas Lane looks like with the snow going down,” Swanson said. “It’s nothing but dog waste.”
Village Attorney Bob Loberg said the covenants are applicable to those who have them recorded on their property through the Register of Deeds office.
“Enforcement of covenants is never a municipal obligation,” Loberg said. “The village has a right to do so, but doesn’t have to. This is a private arrangement between the developer and those who purchase lots. Each individual property owner has a cause to bring suit, which is why these usually don’t mean much. The cost of enforcement would be astronomical.”
He advised Swanson if a violation occurs that’s against village ordinance, to report it to the village authorities. Swanson replied that the police will do nothing.
“They don’t mean anything to the people coming in from Minnesota,” Swanson said of the covenants. “Nothing will ever change. We can put sheds wherever we want, have campers sitting out all winter long, do whatever we want. We can start looking like junky neighborhoods around town here.”
She then promised to take her husband around town to document who has junky vehicles sitting out.
“We are going to work toward bettering enforcement in the future,” Village President Becky Beissel said.
“This isn’t just your neighborhood,” Trustee Dale Hines said. “Some have a homeowner’s association and once the developer walks away, it just dies. This needs to be put on the agenda for another time.”
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