By Marney Simon | Enterprise Staff
Neighbors in Harvest Glen and surrounding areas continue to speak out over a proposal that would put 160 truck parking stalls behind the Plainfield Small Business Park.
The issue first came to light in July, when the parking next to DuKane Precast along Route 30 near 135th was noticed by Village Administrator Brain Murphy. The owner of the vacant lot, Clayton Olsen of Dayfield Properties, LLC, had been leasing parking spots for overnight parking for big rigs. At that time, the village approached Olsen, telling him he needed a special use permit and site plan review to operate the lot, which is currently using undeveloped property inside the industrial zoned area.
Olsen brought his proposal to the board last month, but parking continues at the site.
On Monday, more concerns over the issue were brought to the board of trustees.
“[Neighbors] are concerned about the effect this is going to have in terms of traffic, pollution, questionable activities going on,” Guy Thomas, a member of the Board of Directors of a Harvest Glen Homeowners Association, told the board on Aug 20. “There’s equally concern and upset about the fact that there doesn’t appear to be anything being done by the village… People feel right now, and a lot of people I’m getting calls from or come by the house, a lot of people feel that you’ve just given up on this.”
The continued parking at the site without board approval has sparked outrage among some neighbors, questioning if a backroom deal has allowed the parking to go on.
Last week, the village issued a cease and desist order to Olsen, asking him to halt grading on the property and to have all trucks out of the proposed parking area by Aug. 28. The letter conceded that while a special use permit is not required, a site plan review for the parking lot needs to come to the board for approval.
Contacted regarding the issue, several members of the Board of Trustees responded to the issue, stating flatly that there is no special treatment for Olsen, and the board is moving forward investigating the issue.
“First, there is no proposed truck terminal. As long as I have been on the board, no plans were submitted or approved regarding any such terminal. The subject of a “truck terminal” is merely rumor,” Trustee Brian Wojowski wrote in an email to the Plainfield Enterprise. “Apparently Mr. Olsen believes he is allowed to park the semi-trucks in that location because of legislation passed by this board in the early 2000’s. The current board disagrees. A cease and desist letter was sent to Mr. Olsen giving him reasonable time to remove certain items from the property including trucks.”
Wojowski noted that the village board does not have the legal authority to remove trucks from the site.
“With regard to backroom deals, I am aware of the allegation. Keep in mind, the same allegation was made with the GP Transco issue on Renwick Road, These allegations turned out to be false but did seem to stir up enough controversy so that the group opposed to the Renwick Road gained from the allegations. I hear the same mantra with every project that is opposed to by this group,” Wojowski added. “From where I sit, I see no such activity… I will not stand for corruption in any shape or form.”
Trustees Cally Larson and Margie Bonuchi also responded to the Plainfield Enterprise query via email.
“I have no problem going on record stating that it’s beyond disturbing that there is so much talk about these supposed back door deals and he said she said talk: none of that is valid, none of that is true, and I would encourage if anyone has video or anything in writing confirming all this “speculation of back door deals” to do the right thing and bring it forward,” Larson wrote. “I do not believe that this proposed truck parking fits the best interest of our community. The lack of controls in place to offset potential risks is concerning and the concept does not fit the area.”
Bonuchi added similar comments, also referring to the cease and desist letter that requires truck parking to halt by Aug. 28.
“There was never any deal or approval for this at any time!” Bonuchi wrote. “As far as I am concerned he needs to remove the trucks and stop using this location as a parking/truck facility. It is not in the best interest of our community and it needs to stop immediately. There is no way I would ever support a truck stop at this location, never support the overnight sleeping in cabs and the whole facility in general. And I have no problem standing behind that. I know everyone is very upset and we are trying to get this stopped as quickly as possible!”
Director of Planning Jonathan Proulx also responded to the newspaper, noting that so far, Olsen has complied with the order by halting the grading efforts at the site. Proulx echoed the statement that there have been no backroom deals and said the village has been transparent in the process.
“We expect the truck parking will be eliminated by the deadline of Aug. 28, if not sooner,” Proulx wrote. “We are prepared to take the necessary steps to enforce this deadline.”
A date for Olsen to return to the board for a site plan review has not been finalized.