Green Garden Township officials earlier this month approved a resolution authorizing information-gathering about incorporation as a rural district.
But GGT Supervisor Dean Christofilos wants to make something clear: “Incorporation is a discussion, not a decision.”
Responding to a resident who asked why the GGT board is “planning on doing this,” Christofilos said, “We are not ‘planning on doing this.’ We are a long way from deciding on incorporation, and we share many of the same concerns others may have. “Incorporation was presented to us by Mr. (Thomas) Becker’s Watershed Committee as one possible option among several other options to push back against the proposed 2,500 acres of solar, battery storage, and data centers.
“Our goal,” he continued, “is to remain a rural residential community and not see Green Garden turn into an undesirable industrial area.
“If we find that incorporation would cause taxes to skyrocket or would not truly protect our rural character, then it is not something we would pursue.
“At this point, we are simply gathering information—discussing the potential benefits, drawbacks, and challenges. We will thoroughly research whether incorporation would help us preserve our rural residential identity and prevent 2,500 acres in Green Garden–6,000 in three townships–of prime farmland from being covered with large-scale solar installations.
“Other options currently being discussed and implemented include:
- Organizing community opposition, including ‘No Solar’ signs.
- Supporting potential legal action, such as the lawsuit Mr. Tom Becker’s Watershed Committee may file.
- Considering incorporation—but only after careful research into whether it would help stop the project and what the benefits and drawbacks would be.
“This is a discussion—not a decision.”
During the GGT Board’s March 9 meeting, longtime Homer Township/Homer Glen resident Kevin Hoffmeister told the group that, overall, incorporation was good for his township.
He was a member of the Township Board and Planning Committee that ushered in the incorporation at Homer Glen.
He said incorporation would give the Township a greater say in land use, also noting that taxes are based on the services a township brings in.
The resolution approved by the board on March 9, meanwhile, states: “The Green Garden Township Board, with an interest towards exploring the feasibility of a limited rural incorporation, tasks the Watershed Committee, a volunteer, non-governmental organization, with gathering information on the viability of such a venture.
“By passing this resolution, the Green Garden Township Board is not approving the incorporation but rather is seeking to gather additional information to review, so that the Board can make an informed decision to determine if the Township will take the necessary steps to incorporate at some point in the future.”
Christofilos added, “The Township Board and Green Garden residents enjoy our Township’s rural residential community. The primary reason for considering incorporation is the significant number of proposed utility-scale solar projects that would convert large portions of Green Garden Township farmland into industrial solar facilities.”
Also approved at that meeting was a resolution against the massive Earthrise Solar field application.
The resolution concludes, “Now be it therefore resolved that the Supervisor and Board of Trustees of Green Garden Township oppose the Earthrise industrial solar project currently pending before the Will County Board.”