Kendall Co. Plan Consortium Minutes 2009 05-27-09 APPROVED
Kendall County Planning Consortium
May 27, 2009
Attendees:
Jonathan Koepke, ENCAP Dave Cumming, ENCAP
Carl Peterson, ENCAP Anne Vickery, Kendall Co. Board
Judy Sollinger, Oswego Edith McDonald, Oswego
Jim Torri, Joliet Rick Moore, Joliet
June McCord, Plattville Betty Langeland, Plattville
Don Meyer, UBC John Sterrett, Kendall Co. Bld. & Zoning
Anne Lucietto, Yorkville Richard Scheffrahn, Yorkville
Matt Schury, Kendall Co. Record James Grabowski, Minooka
Jim Brownlee, Minooka David Deahl, Minooka
Glen Schieberl, Minooka President Brennan, Minooka
Terry McEvilly, Minooka
The meeting was called to order at 7 pm by Village President Brennan. He welcomed the guests
and thanked them for attending the consortium meeting in Minooka, then introduced Anne
Lucietto.
Anne Lucietto introduced staff members, Carl Peterson, Dave Cumming and Jonathan Koepke
from ENCAP, Inc. The firm offers practical solutions to wetlands, best management practices,
native landscaping and erosion control.
Long term site stabilization and less maintenance of vacant land is a goal of all villages.
Stabilizing property can be accomplished by developers, private land owners, municipalities or
firms like ENCAP, with the knowledge of soils, chemicals, vegetation, watering patterns, annual
and perennial plantings, fertilizers, weather and some luck. A property is considered stabilized
when 70 % is in a vegetative state.
There are many factors that affect the optimum growth of vegetation. The soil's chemistry can
vary from acid to alkaline, and consistency can be clay to sandy. A site's condition can be flat or
sloping. The presence of underground utilities, building stone and construction debris can cause
numerous problems for plantings. Seedbeds must be prepared and seeding can be performed by
broad cat, drop seeding or drilling (as farmers do).
Fertilizers must have the right composition, depending on the soil and planting types. The soils
can be tested for Ph and nitrogen levels. Mulches can be straw, compost, or polymer mulch
containing crystals that act as a sponge, giving nutrients back to the roots. Mycorrhizae,
resembling black sand, is a fertilizer that supplies food to the root branches. It is a fungus
attaching itself to the root system.
The best plantings result in a modified pasture blend with an end result typically 12"-18" in
height. When mowed, the lowest height should be 6". It is best to cut before the annuals go to
seed.
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Developers have tendencies to approach the care-taking of properties in several ways. These
include: 1) being reactive, using minimal best management practices and acting on cleanup
methods only when nuisance letters are send to them by villages; 2) acting in compliance,
satisfying permit requirements and marketing needs, using an economic approach; or 3) being
proactive, so they are able to file notices of termination on properties.
Municipal strategies include better communication between developers and the municipalities,
understanding the root causes of complaints and enforcing selectively. In addition the cities can
establish codes and ordinances for building pads to assure better maintenance and stabilization.
Cities and villages have regulatory ordinances that assist in maintaining property. Included are
storm water ordinances, municipal ordinances like weed height and sediment control. In
addition the IEPA and MS 4 laws mandate discharge detection, runoff control and pollution
control. The municipalities can declassify grasses and legumes as weeds, and LOCs and bonds
can be cashed in.
Questions and answers were completed during and after the presentation. Anne Lucietto
adjourned the meeting at 8:25 pm.
Meeting summary submitted by Annette Williams
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