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Envision Unlimited seeks approval for four‑person group home at 10929 Silven Way; neighbors cite safety and staffing concerns, commission tables item
Summary
Envision Unlimited proposed a licensed four‑resident group home at 10929 Silven Way. Mark McHugh, Envision’s CEO, described staffing, training and licensing; numerous neighbors recited police reports and alleged repeated disturbances at an existing nearby group home. Commissioners voted to table the matter pending legal review and additional information.
Envision Unlimited, represented by President and CEO Mark McHugh, asked the Lebanon Plan Commission for a special‑use permit to operate a small community residence at 10929 Silven Way to house four adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID).
"People with ID want to live in home...our job is to help them do that," McHugh said, explaining Envision’s model of direct‑service professionals, a house manager and regional administrative oversight. He said homes are licensed by the state, staff receive background checks and training, and that the organization operates in roughly two dozen Illinois counties with nearly 100 homes. McHugh estimated a $1 million economic impact tied to payroll in the area.
The bulk of the hearing consisted of residents’ testimony questioning whether Envision could prevent disruptive incidents that neighbors attribute to an existing nearby group home. Several residents said they had experienced repeated nuisance events and property intrusions at the nearby address; one attendee said a resident from that facility generated 49 911 calls in a single month. A resident summarized police data provided to the commission, saying there were 22 police reports connected with the other facility from September 2018 through May 2025, mostly nonviolent incidents or missing‑person reports.
Public commenters and some commissioners raised questions about staffing levels and turnover, the limits of municipal authority (the city attorney informed participants that the state and federal fair‑housing law constrain local regulation), occupancy caps (the county/state can allow up to eight but Envision proposed four), and how the city could address clustering of group homes. One resident described an alleged in‑home break‑in and said the experience left neighbors fearful; another urged the commission to require residents be over age 21 to avoid school funding impacts. Envision responded that residents would be adults, all would be on Medicaid and that individual staffing ratios are set by assessment and licensing rules.
Citing the volume of public comment and requests for legal guidance and more information about the existing group home’s special‑use status, a commissioner moved to keep the item open for expanded public discussion and for staff to obtain legal counsel and additional records. The motion carried. The commission will defer a recommendation and schedule further hearings and materials for the council packet.
