Resident urges village to stop off‑record communications with developer and to preserve records

Aaron Becker told the Barrington Hills Board of Trustees on March 30 that the village attorney’s written response to his Jan. 27 questions omitted answers to several explicit requests and did not confirm whether the safeguards he sought would be implemented. “Was the omission intentional?” Becker asked, calling on trustees to provide clarity.

Becker asked the board to confirm that off‑record communications with Brennan Development Group would cease, that project‑specific merits would not be discussed absent formal filings, that unsupported tax claims would not be repeated without substantiation, and that records would be preserved. He also urged the board to “do everything in your power to maintain the true independence of the plan commission.”

Trustees did not provide an immediate response to Becker’s request for specific commitments during the public‑comment period. The mayor/board president acknowledged his remarks and moved the meeting forward to the next agenda item.

Separately during public comment, Robin Dugan of Old Sutton Road urged trustees to evaluate the cumulative drainage impacts of development in the Flint Creek/Spring Creek watershed and to clarify who is responsible for maintenance of the drainage ditch along Old Sutton Road. Dugan told the board that Goose Lake development and other changes have increased downstream flow and recurring flooding, and asked whether the village will approve upstream development without first confirming downstream infrastructure can accommodate additional runoff.

Village staff and the village engineer later told trustees that the Acorn subdivision application includes a comprehensive stormwater report and that, for that specific site, there are no wetlands and the disturbance is under one acre. The board did not take immediate formal direction on wider watershed maintenance at the March 30 meeting.