Why the Merryman amendment should have failed

The amendment considered and approved tonight by the Woodstock City Council should have failed, and here's why.

The Plan Commission, made up of residents, worked long and hard, on behalf of the Residents of Woodstock, to come up a list of amendments. Merryman disliked all of them, except for a road north from U.S. 14 at the Doty Road light.

Merryman didn't want to negotiate or bargain before the January 18th City Council meeting. At the last minute on January 18, they asked for, and got, a delay.

Two days later the Mayor, a City employee, the City Attorney and the Merryman project manager met all afternoon. Out of that meeting came a considerably shorter proposed amendment, and all the enforcement teeth were gone. Consensus and resolution were the goals. As one Councilperson noted, it seemed like the City did all the giving and Merryman did all the getting.

Tonight's proposed amendment was considerably different that the amendment proposed just one meeting ago. And a lot different from the Plan Commission's recommendations. And it didn't get any publicity before tonight's meeting.

The enforcement teeth were gone from the proposed amendment.

Groundwater protection took a hit. Merryman wanted the City to accept the County's more relaxed groundwater testing - annually, not quarterly. However, pit-area resident Matt Gilbert informed the Council that Merryman's explanation of the County's relaxed standard was wrong. It's only after a two-year period of quarterly testing that a business can then request going to annual testing.

The City could have kept the quarterly testing. It just couldn't allow Merryman to go with less than annual testing. As I said to the Council, I was sure that Morton Salt told the Village of Richmond years ago, "No problem; the water is safe."

Emergency access requirements were dropped.

No Plan Commission members were invited to join the Mayor in the reconciliation meeting with Rich Zirk. How much longer will City residents be willing to serve on committees? There was a huge turnover of experienced members of the Woodstock Historic Preservation Commission, because the City Council continually disregarded their recommendations.

Bonding requirements were lowered, even after Merryman's claim that the bond was duplicative and unnecessary because of a similar State bond. Council comments tonight were that it is not duplicative.

Where does the Army Corps of Engineers stand on the wetlands? If I recall the discussion two years ago, the Corps' approval was imminent.

Merryman offered reasons for not wanting trucks to enter/leave from the Doty Road extension. They shook their money fist at the Council. Not one Council person thought of the idea of the trucks entering the pit area from the Doty Road extension and then driving along the perimeter to the current entrance (without using Lily Pond Road), entering the pit, leaving the pit, weighing on the scales in the present location, and then driving back to the Doty Road extension.

Traffic violations and truck statute violations can be addressed very easily. A coordinated effort between Woodstock Police, McHenry County Sheriff's Department, Illinois Secretary of State Police and Crystal Lake Police would solve the problem.

If trucks drag dirt, mud and gravel out onto Lily Pond Road, cite the drivers.
If loads aren't tarped, cite the drivers.
If trucks speed, cite the drivers.
If drivers impede traffic on U.S. 14 (stopping in a through traffic lane to allow an oncoming truck to turn or a truck in cross-traffic to turn), cite the driver.
If drivers don't stop at the stop sign, cite the drivers.

An eastbound gravel-hauling truck will stop on U.S. 14 to allow trucks to turn left from Lily Pond Road onto eastbound U.S. 14; 2-3-4 trucks will turn left, while the stopped truck is holding up traffic. Then he'll turn left, before westbound traffic can start.)

If a Woodstock police car and two motorcycle officers spent a few hours at that corner this spring, the problem would stop in a hurry.