Barrington Area Council of Governments

The 2008 Legislative Platform consists of guiding principles which include: protect local government revenues; support local and regional land use planning and zoning without disruption; preserve local government decision-making and the right to self-determination; support additional permissive authorities for townships and non-home rule municipalities; preserve, protect and enhance environmental resources and open space; and promote good government and the protection of public health and safety. Priorities set for the 2008 session include:

• Respond to the issues relating to the proposed Canadian National acquisition of the EJ&E rail road
• Fund groundwater research and protection efforts
• Oppose moving to a “Point of Destination” sales tax

• Support amendments to the state Affordable Housing Act

• Support the extension of Route 53 in Lake County
• Support streamlining of administrative procedures for MFT small projects

BACOG takes a united legislative front to help bring awareness to the special needs of the Barrington area. Working closely with legislators ultimately protects the planning goals and environmental tenets of the BACOG Comprehensive Plan.

BACOG officials will be discussing the platform with Barrington-area and other state lawmakers at a legislative breakfast on February 16th. The breakfast is co-sponsored by BACOG and the Lake County Municipal League. Plans are also under way for members to meet with legislators in Springfield during the Spring session.

Workshop shows how Sensible Tools workbook can help communities make decisions about development proposals within the context of local and regional comprehensive plans

(Barrington) … Elected and appointed officials and other partners in community development in the Barrington region and greater McHenry County learned how to address development challenges with the help of an innovative workbook, Sensible Tools for Healthy Communities: A Decision-Making Workbook for Local Officials, Developers, and Community Leaders, at an interactive workshop, on Jan. 29.

The event, “What’s Your Development Plan?” was hosted by the Barrington Area Council of Governments (BACOG) and McHenry County Council of Governments (MCCG), both of which serve as resources to local municipal and county officials as they grapple with growth and development opportunities.

“Local leaders are fully aware that their development decisions will affect not only their communities, but the entire Barrington region and the rest of metropolitan Chicago,” said Janet L. Agnoletti, executive director of BACOG. “Many elected and appointed local leaders wish to expand their knowledge in community planning so that they can make the best choices. Together, the workshop and the Sensible Tools workbook present a great opportunity to familiarize decision-makers with development and redevelopment issues and practices.”

The free Tuesday evening workshop at the Barrington Public Safety Building featured an interactive game that illustrated how the Sensible Tools workbook can serve as a hands-on aid to help community leaders and developers make the best decision on an individual development proposal, based on its overall merits, in the context of the community’s needs and goals. The Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) and Metropolitan Mayors Caucus produced the step-by-step guide to help communities answer the tough question: “How do you decide what type of development is right for your community?”

In the Barrington area, the answer to that question depends not only on each individual community’s needs, but also on whether or not the proposal meets the principles set forth in the BACOG Comprehensive Plan. The plan, most recently updated in 1998, promotes development in the Barrington area that strikes a balance between conservation, preservation and development; responds to the needs and desires of BACOG area residents; and supports the unique qualities of the BACOG environment. And for McHenry County community leaders, ramping up for engagement in the County’s long-range planning effort for its 2030 Plan, the workshop helped define priorities needed today as development proposals come forward to plan commissions, village boards, and city councils.

“Whether they’re confronting the challenges of new residential development, or addressing a new retail development proposal along Randall Road, communities can use this workbook to make educated decisions,” said Anna Bicanic Moeller, executive director of MCCG. “With the Sensible Tools workbook in their toolbox, communities can meet their changing needs with carefully planned new development.”

During the workshop, each table of participants acted out a different part – plan commissioner, community member, developer, and media – in a role-playing game, using the workbook as a guide to solve a realistic retail development dilemma. As the development game progressed, Michael Davidson, MPC manager of planning, and Kristi DeLaurentiis, MPC manager of local government and community relations, pointed out how each group might tap the workbook’s three sections for guidance. The introduction presents sensible growth principles and techniques, allowing users to evaluate whether a proposed project makes good sense. Part 1 is a series of questions to help local officials evaluate requests for five types of events that typically trigger public hearings, such as adopting or revising local comprehensive plans or zoning amendments or annexation of development sites. Part 2 offers helpful guidance for improving projects so that they better achieve community objectives and sensible growth principles.

Spiral-bound and CD-ROM editions of the Sensible Tools workbook, as well as its sister publication, Retail 1-2-3, are available by contacting Davidson at 312-863-6009 or mdavidson@metroplanning.org. The workbook also is available for download, free of charge, at http://metroplanning.org/cmapubs/sensibletools.asp.

The workbook was funded by: Grand Victoria Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Allstate Foundation, Bank One, and Bank of America. MPC undertook work on this project as part of its Regional Action Agenda, of which the Campaign for Sensible Growth is a component. Funders include The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Chicago Community Trust, McCormick Tribune Foundation, and Aon Corporation.

The Barrington Area Council of Governments (BACOG) is a regional planning organization covering a 90-square-mile geographical area and representing seven municipalities and two townships in areas of Cook, Lake, McHenry and Kane Counties. Located in the northwest Chicago metropolitan area, BACOG’s governmental entity members are: Barrington, Barrington Hills, Barrington Township, Cuba Township, Deer Park, Lake Barrington, North Barrington, South Barrington and Tower Lakes.

The McHenry County Council of Governments is a cohesive network of governmental bodies who seek to foster cooperation between all levels of government. The purpose of the McHenry County Council of Governments is to uphold and advocate principles of effective local government, facilitate solutions to regional issues and otherwise lessen the burdens of government.

Founded in 1934, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group of business and civic leaders committed to serving the public interest through development, promotion and implementation of sound planning and development policies so all residents have access to opportunity and a good quality of life, the building blocks of a globally competitive greater Chicago region.

The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus provides a forum through which the chief elected officials of the region cooperatively develop consensus and act on common public policy issues and multi-jurisdictional challenges. With a foundation of collaboration and consensus-based decision making, it serves a number of functions for its partner organizations and local governments.

BACOG Honors Environmental Consultant With Award

November 15, 2007 Press Release

The Barrington Area Council of Governments awarded its 2007 Award for Exceptional Contribution to the Community to Kurt O. Thomsen, Ph.D., P.G., the principal of KOT Environmental Consulting, Inc.

As a volunteer for BACOG since 2001, Dr. Thomsen has applied his more than 35 years of experience in groundwater resource management towards serving as the primary advisor to the BACOG Water Resources Initiative. His work in support of BACOG’s groundwater research project has involved over a thousand hours of research and concept/protocol development, training and presentations to the WRI Committee, and invaluable assistance to Janet L. Agnoletti, BACOG Executive Director, and staff of BACOG. Dr. Thomsen’s innovative methodology to analyze well log data resulted in maps of the shallow aquifer system and delineation of groundwater recharge areas in the greater Barrington region. He continues to work on a definition of the region’s water balance and an estimate of sustainability of our groundwater resources. He has generously shared these results and his professional expertise with not only BACOG as a region, but also with many of the individual local governments of BACOG. Numerous papers authored by Dr. Thomsen have promoted BACOG and its environmental planning efforts. Dr. Kurt Thomsen’s work toward an understanding of the groundwater resources in the Barrington area are recognized as an exceptional contribution to the BACOG community.