Pond

Middlefork Forest Preserve Boundary

Woods

Prairie White-Fringed Orchid

Blanding's Turtle

In our last issue of the Lake & Prairie, you may recall the article, “True to Form: Costco Plans to Bulldoze Lake Forest Wetlands.” Simplified, Costco and their developer Field Partners proposed to bulldoze, pave and occupy important wetlands and savanna adjacent to an important forest preserve in Lake County. Events have moved quickly, and on August 18, the Lake Forest City Council announced that they were rejecting the proposed Costco! Putting the icing on the cake, they also announced a deal cobbling funds together to purchase and transfer two thirds of the site to the Lake County Forest Preserve District for incorporation into one of our nicest parks, Middlefork Savanna.

Booting a sprawl-promoting, environmentally destructive warehouse store, then buying the land for permanent preservation—who could imagine such a nearly perfect outcome? To get to this point, it took a really powerful coalition—angry homeowners, local private schools, grassroots environmentalists from Sierra Club and Friends of the Chicago River, county agencies including the Lake County Forest Preserve District and Stormwater Management Commission, state agencies including the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, federal agencies including US Fish & Wildlife and (difficult for me to say this…) US Army Corps of Engineers, Illinois Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn, interest (not really opposition, per se) from the entire Lake County Congressional delegation (Durbin, Obama, Kirk), deep pocketed TAP Pharmaceuticals and, last but most interesting, the Chicago Bears.

Across the line of scrimmage from our alliance? The Lake Forest City Council (who are essentially appointed through a single party system and uncontested in election), land owner Walter Dalitsch of Lake Barrington, developer and sometimes-environmentalist Marshall Field V, and $20 billion Costco Wholesale Corporation. Seems like a good match, but right up to the August 18 announcement, we still believed that the LF City Council would go against our overwhelming opposition and approve the Costco.

We are still celebrating, trying to piece together the true story, and working to get the best final plan possible. To those of you who wrote letters or made calls—thank-you! To those in the coalition mentioned above, or mistakenly missed, thank-you, too!

Directions

City of Lake Forest

Talking Points

Village Officials

Monday, 7:30 PM

The Lake Forest City Council Aldermen, who get appointed in one party "elections", have already made up their minds to sacrifice these vital wetlands and court tax revenues from a new Costco. It's hardly a new idea. Every city and village in the county thinks it can strike it rich by plowing under its open space and putting up big box stores. Of course, it doesn't work out. Besides the typical tax abatement deal the big box chains always cut with their host village, there just aren't that many retail shoppers to go around. After the wetlands and prairie are filled and polluted, Costco will likely move to an expanded location, or get taken over by Kmart and close. There must be a half dozen similar stores within that many miles. Rather than playing monkey-see-monkey-do with Vernon Hills, Lake Forest should stick to its core values of a vibrant downtown, grand homes, and plentiful open space.

May 11 Plan Commission Meeting

Wednesday, 6:30 PM

With a standing room only crowd of opposed residents, the Plan Commission decided to put off their vote until their next meeting, clearly angering the Costco representatives. Remaining issues cited: Traffic, Environmental, Character, and Easements. However, the Commission closed public comment on the proposed plat. Public Comment on the two remaining agenda items apparently remains open.