Peeples v. Village of Johnsburg

State: Illinois

Court: 2nd District Appellate

Docket No: 2-09-0516 Rel

Case Date: 07/09/2010

Preview:No. 2-09-0516 Filed: 7-9-10 ______________________________________________________________________________ IN THE APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS SECOND DISTRICT ______________________________________________________________________________ DON A. PEEPLES, JOSEPHINE M. PEEPLES, CHRISTOPHER L. MORRIS, COLETTE D. ZANKO, and RON W. ZANKO, ) Appeal from the Circuit Court ) of McHenry County. ) ) ) Plaintiffs-Appellees, ) ) v. ) No. 07--CH--1421 ) THE VILLAGE OF JOHNSBURG, DAVID ) G. DOMINGUEZ, President, HAROLD MAY, ) WILLIAM SANDELL, JOHN HUEMANN, ) ED HETTERMANN, BRUCE BENNETT, ) and MARY LOU HUTCHINSON, Trustees, ) Honorable ) Maureen P. McIntyre, Defendants-Appellants. ) Judge, Presiding. ______________________________________________________________________________ JUSTICE SCHOSTOK delivered the opinion of the court: This case involves an ordinance enacted by the defendants (collectively, the Village), establishing Special Service Area 23 in the Village of Johnsburg. After the Village proposed the special service area, the plaintiffs and other residents of the area (Objectors) filed an objection petition. The Village determined that the Objectors had not collected enough signatures to meet the statutory threshold to veto the special service area (see 35 ILCS 200/27--55 (West 2006)), and it adopted the ordinance at issue. The plaintiffs filed suit seeking a declaration that the ordinance was void and an injunction. Following a bench trial, the trial court found that the Objectors had collected

No. 2--09--0516 sufficient signatures to veto the Village's creation of Special Service Area 23. The Village appealed. We reverse. In 2007, the Village identified a certain area that it wished to designate as Special Service Area 23, in order to create a wastewater treatment system and facility. The Village contended that waste leaching from septic fields in that area was contributing to the deterioration of the Fox River. On June 5, 2007, the Village approved an ordinance proposing the special service area. The project was to be financed with special tax bonds that would result in each resident of the special service area paying additional taxes each year for 20 years. On June 9, 2007, the Village published notice of the proposal and announced a public hearing to be held on June 25, 2007. The Village also mailed notices to taxpayers living within the proposed special service area. The Village held public hearings on the proposal on June 25 and 27, 2007. On August 22, 2007, the Objectors submitted a petition containing the signatures of owners of record and electors in the special service area who opposed the proposal. Section 27--55 of the Property Tax Code (Code) (35 ILCS 200/27--55 (West 2006)) provides for the filing of such petitions, as follows: "

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