The Village of Channahon is seeking residents who are interested in serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission. The Village President appoints all Planning and Zoning Commission members with the advice and consent of the Village Board of Trustees. Commissioners are appointed to five-year terms. In the event of a vacancy, replacement appointments are for the unexpired term of the member whose place has become vacant.
Planning & Zoning Commissioners typically attend one meeting per month to review development proposals, requests for zoning changes, special use requests, or variations from the Zoning Code. Meetings are the second Monday of the month at 6 p.m. Special meetings and joint meetings with the Village President and Board of Trustees may be called on occasion. The Commission is composed of seven members, including the non-voting chairperson. Commissioners receive an agenda and packet of information in the week prior to the meeting and take time to review staff reports, plans, traffic studies, and often visit the site of the proposal in advance of the meeting. At the meeting, commissioners hear a summary of the staff report and any additional testimony from the applicant.
All meetings are open to the public and comments are welcome for all projects. Many types of projects involve a public hearing. After hearing all information and public comments and discussing the proposal, commissioners vote to make a recommendation to the Village President and Board of Trustees.
Electronic (PDF) copies of the agenda packets from past meetings are available on the Village website, under the Planning & Zoning Commission heading (link). Interested residents are encouraged to review previous meeting minutes and agenda packets to get a sense of what is involved in being a Planning & Zoning Commissioner. Additional information about the Village's Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Code is available on the Planning & Zoning Commission page of the Village's website (link).
A Commissioner is required to have an open mind, understand the Village's Comprehensive Plan, and apply individual judgment in the public interest while fostering an intellectual and factual examination of the issues together with other commissioners in a public setting. The Village of Channahon desires commissioners to have a wide-ranging background of experience and career focus as well as geographic distribution throughout Channahon. A background in a field related to planning and development - such as architecture, engineering, environmental science, or similar - is helpful but not necessary for candidates to possess.
The time commitment for the position may vary, depending on the nature of items being presented to the Commission, but generally two to five hours per month are required. This includes attending meetings and preparation in advance. Attendance at most meetings would be expected. Commissioners are compensated $50 for each scheduled meeting they attend.
If you are interested in applying, please complete the Committee/Appointment Application Form (link) and submit with letter of interest and a brief professional resume to:
Missey Moorman-Schumacher
Village President
Village of Channahon
24555 S. Navajo Drive
Channahon, IL 60410
mschumacher@channahon.org