Crete Township gets OK to convert community-center sign to dynamic display; variances approved

The Will County Planning & Zoning Commission on July 15 approved a special-use permit and two variances allowing Crete Township to convert a decades-old freestanding community-center sign into an on-premise dynamic display at the township community center on South Cottage Grove Avenue. Township attorney Katie Nagy of Ansel Glink, P.C., told the commission the township acquired the site in 2024 to operate it as a community center and that the center hosts senior activities, exercise groups and will expand to youth and family programs in the fall. Nagy said the township and county are discussing emergency-management plans and that the center may be used as an emergency shelter; the dynamic display would be used to post township notices and emergency messages. Staff said the sign footprint is about 148 square feet, the existing freestanding sign is 7 feet from the Cottage Grove Avenue right of way (the freestanding-sign standard is 10 feet), and a residence is about 219 feet from the northern sign face (the dynamic-display separation standard is 300 feet). Staff recommended approval of the special-use permit and both variances, noting the sign has been in place for about 25 years and that converting the sign would allow the township to reuse existing infrastructure rather than build a new sign. Staff also described applicable dynamic-display rules the sign must meet if installed, including limits on display area, message dwell time and maximum nighttime brightness; staff noted the proposed digital portion would be less than 49 percent of the total sign area and that messages would adhere to the county's dwell-time standard (about 10 seconds per message). Commissioners voted to approve the special-use permit and the variances for the reduced separation distance (300 feet to 219 feet) and the reduced right-of-way setback (10 feet to 7 feet). Roll-call votes recorded in the transcript show unanimous approval by Commissioners John Kiefner, Roger Bettenhausen, Louis Navarette, Matthew Gugala, Karen Warwick and Chairman Huestepin. The township must obtain a building permit and ensure the installed sign complies with the county's dynamic-display specifications and any conditions attached to the special-use permit. Staff noted an environmental review (EcoCat) identified protected resources in the area but that further review concluded adverse effects were unlikely.