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Hayworth resident urges McLean County to halt regional land-use plan, cites missing intergovernmental agreements and school-district outreach failures
Summary
At the Executive Committee meeting, resident Tricia Braid told members the county’s draft strategic land-use plan contains mapping errors, omits the Village of Hayworth’s extraterritorial jurisdiction and did not engage the Hayworth School District; she asked the committee to stop the process and send the plan back to the Regional Planning
Tricia Braid, a Hayworth resident, told the McLean County Executive Committee that the county’s draft strategic land-use plan contains factual errors and procedural gaps that, in her view, must be fixed before any adoption.
Braid said she submitted a letter with examples to Chairperson Johnston and asked the committee to “stop this plan where it sits and send the RPC back to the drawing board for the comprehensive plan.” She cited three primary concerns: the plan’s map does not reflect Hayworth’s extraterritorial zoning authority, the plan proposes residential growth in locations where the local school district said it was not consulted, and the plan’s modeling lacked “ground truthing” and sufficient formal engagement with rural municipalities and townships.
Why it matters: Braid argued that omissions and incorrect assumptions in the plan could lead to inappropriate zoning recommendations and future litigation. She cited a FOIA response indicating no intergovernmental agreements exist to extend municipal zoning authority beyond corporate limits and asked for legal review before adoption.
Key points raised by Braid: - Page 18 (plan) references extension of municipal zoning authority beyond corporate limits; FOIA to McLean County showed no intergovernmental agreements authorizing that. - The plan omits Hayworth’s established extraterritorial jurisdiction; Braid asked that the ETJ be shown on the plan’s map so it is not overlooked in future decisions. - Page 20 proposes residential development within Hayworth School District boundaries; the school district said it was not engaged, creating risks to transportation, staffing and capacity. - The plan’s modeling lacked sufficient ground truthing; rural and urban townships were not formally engaged and the public-comment timeline may be too short to allow meaningful reviews.
Braid also cited Chapter 20 of the McLean County Code, which she said gives the Executive Committee oversight of the Regional Planning Commission and obligates the committee to ensure open and transparent vetting of major plans.
Response and context: The Executive Committee did not take formal action on the plan during this meeting. Member Klein later encouraged interested parties to view the recorded Land Use and Transportation Committee meeting to hear the Regional Planning Commission presentation and to examine the process used by planners.
Ending: Braid asked the committee to set a clear standard for intergovernmental collaboration and transparency before moving the plan forward. The committee did not vote on the plan at this meeting; members referenced the committee-level discussion and the recorded Land Use and Transportation meeting for further context.
