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Politics & Government

Trustees Approve New Home Business Restrictions

The restrictions will be enforced based upon complaints.

Lake in the Hills trustees passed an amendment to its zoning code Thursday intended to restrict home businesses and other kinds of activities to protect a neighborhood’s “residential character.”

It was a unanimous vote passed without discussion.

“We are modifying existing regulations,” said Dan Olson, the village’s director of community development. Olson said the new regulations “allow for the occasional meeting or gathering” of "Boy Scouts, church groups and Mary Kay parties."

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 Enforcement of the ordinance would be complaint-driven.  

“The point of the ordinance is that we don’t want tons of traffic in our neighborhoods,” said Trustee Ray Bogdanowski Friday morning. “If there is an issue, we would hope that you talk to your neighbor and get it resolved. Unfortunately, some people don’t want the confrontation. This ordinance would help resolve that kind of situation.”

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Some of the new restrictions include:

  • Home business must be conducted inside the home or garage, not visible from the street.
  • Employees of home businesses cannot park on the street.
  • No merchandise can be visible to neighbors or village inspectors. 
  • Customers are allowed by invitation only. These customers – those attending, say,  a Tupperware or Mary Kay party –can purchase merchandise directly. And customers can pick up merchandise that had been ordered earlier.
  • No more than eight customers per day shall be allowed to receive classroom-type instruction. And – for, say, piano or dance lessons – no more than two pupils at any one time and no more than a total of four pupils per day.
  • No more than a quarter of  the floor space inside a home can be used for business purposes.
  • Gatherings of, say, Boy Scouts and church groups are allowed four times per month. There is no limit to the size of these groups. Vehicles, however, shall not impede the flow of traffic.
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