Homewood residents can intervene in case, judge rules
Developer wants former golf course separated from village
A group of Homewood residents can be a party to a lawsuit that seeks to disconnect the former Calumet Country Club from the village, a Cook County judge ruled Thursday.
The decision by Judge Maureen Ward Kirby came following a hearing that, in part, was to determine whether residents, who had filed a petition to intervene March 11, had done so in a timely manner.
Diversified Partners wants to redevelop the site, northwest of Dixie Highway and 175th Street, for warehouses and distribution. Homewood’s Village Board voted March 9 against rezoning the 116 acres of the site that are in the village, following a recommendation March 4 by the village’s Planning and Zoning Commission.
Before the sale last fall to Diversified, owners of the golf course filed a lawsuit in July 2019 seeking disconnection of the property.
A settlement agreement approved in late January by Homewood called for the village, among other things, to review and act on zoning and economic incentives for the development, according to Chris Cummings, Homewood village attorney.
If that didn’t happen, Diversified was free to pursue disconnection.
After the disconnection lawsuit was filed, Cummings had, at public meetings in 2019 regarding the issue, told residents that the village would continue to defend its interests in the matter.
Eric VanderPloeg, an attorney representing Diversified, said after Thursday’s ruling the decision allowed new parties to come into a case that’s been settled.
“My client has an enforceable agreement,” VanderPloeg said. “The village is bound by that.”
The lawsuit will next in court date April 23. A trial on the disconnection lawsuit had been postponed pending the outcome of a vote to rezone the golf course, which would have been the first step in evaluating the redevelopment plans and creating a tax increment financing district, which was also part of the settlement agreement.
In seeking to intervene, Homewood taxpayers said they “could suffer tangible detriments and they will be seriously adversely affected if the (disconnection case) is not adequately def ended ,” according to their lawsuit. Those adverse impacts could include reduced property values, significantly worsened air quality and decreased roadway safety, the filing states.