Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Variance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Petitioner seeks two-foot setback variance for shed in DuPage County
Summary
A Wayne Township homeowner asked the DuPage County zoning hearing officer for permission to place a new shed two feet closer to the property line than the 10-foot requirement, citing septic lines and site constraints; the record was closed and a recommendation is set for April 1, 2026.
Rebecca Bartoak, the petitioner, asked the DuPage County zoning hearing officer on March 18, 2026, for a variance to reduce the required 10-foot side-yard setback for a new concrete pad and shed to about 8 feet. Zoning hearing officer Robert Carthol said he would close the record and render a recommendation on April 1, 2026, which would then go to the county development committee and later to the full DuPage County Board.
Carthol opened the hearing, identified the case (petition 02606 in Wayne Township) and said the matter had been published in the Daily Herald on March 3, 2026. He reported no formal objections from authorities and introduced two exhibits: a 2022 survey and a version of that survey marked to show the proposed shed location.
Bartoak told the hearing the proposed 16-by-16 shed would sit on a 17-by-20 concrete pad and that the placement was chosen to avoid existing septic lines. "DuPage County when I first requested the building permit, they came out and probed the ground and ensured that the septic lines stopped just before the concrete pad," she said. She also said plumbers had mapped the lines after the family moved onto the one-acre lot three years earlier.
Carthol questioned alternatives for placing the shed and noted the aerial photo in the file showed trees near the proposed location; Bartoak replied those smaller trees had been removed and said the aerial was outdated. She described other on-site constraints — mature trees, a garden and existing landscaping — that she said made the proposed location the most usable spot: "It was to make our lives easier," she said, explaining the slightly larger pad would accommodate storage and garbage bins.
Two other call participants, Frank Romero and Sarah, confirmed they were on the line to learn how the process works for separate property matters and said they were not commenting on Bartoak's petition. Bartoak told the hearing she had spoken with the neighbor who shares the property line and that the neighbor did not object.
Carthol took the case under advisement, closed the record, and said he would issue his recommendation at a 3:00 p.m. April 1 recommendation hearing; no additional testimony would be permitted. He explained that his recommendation would be transmitted to the DuPage County Development Committee for consideration and then, later in April, to the full County Board for final action. The hearing was then adjourned.
