Will County Board Says 'No' To Hindu Temple Plan

April 21, 2008

Author: Staff Writer

Source: WBBM/STNG

http://www.wbbm780.com/Will-County-Board-Says--No--To-Hindu-Temple-Plan/2041262

The Will County Board has rejected by an 18-to-7 vote a special-use zoning permit for a Hindu temple in southwest Homer Township after neighbors and the village of Homer Glen opposed the plan.

The Ganesha Gayathri Temple was proposed for 4.9 acres on Gougar Road, a few blocks south of 151st Street, in an agricultural zoning district. The applicants also requested two zoning variances, one of which concerned reducing lot-frontage requirements.

"The narrowness of the lot - 165 feet they're requesting, down from 300 feet - isn't conducive to a church," said board member Jim Bilotta (R-Lockport), chairman of the county board's land use committee.

Bilotta also mentioned safety and traffic issues as factors in the case.

"Bottom line, it came down to: It doesn't fit there," he said. "We definitely encourage them to hopefully find some other property in the district, in the area, which we can work with."

See also: Hinduism, Civic, Zoning