Huntley Musings: The Human Side of Government

It can be easy to get caught up in the gobbledygook of local government. There are village board meetings, committee of the whole meetings and planning commission meetings with agenda items that can make your eyes glaze over.

Sometimes, there’s a little agenda item that brings home the human side of government.

Recently, Peter and Jenna Kulilowski sat in the audience _ the only other people there besides a handful of journalists _ listening attentively to the items on the agenda.

The Kulilowskis were there to hear the discussion and await the vote on agenda item 6A, ordinance (0)2012-08.35, an ordinance amending ordinance (0)2005-08.69-final planned unit development site plan and final plat of subdivision approval for Cider Grove subdivision.

The couple was motivated to sit through the village board meeting by a simple desire: to give their young son a safe place to play.

Safe environment

Four-year-old Logan Kulilowski has not been able to play in his family’s new backyard because it is not a safe environment for him. Logan is autistic and has a type of autism diagnosed as Pervasive Development Disorder (PDD). PDD falls under the autism spectrum and is characterized by impulsiveness, Jenna said. His PDD means Logan does not to have a sense of danger, she said.

The backyard is dangerous because the short split fence is too easy for him to slip through.

Logan has tried to get through the short split fence around the family’s back yard which abuts Huntley-Dundee Road, Peter said. The speed limit on the road is 50 miles per hour. Logan loves cars so he's fascinated by the road.

Peter and Jenna's family moved to Huntley earlier this year, purchasing a home in the Cider Grove subdivision. Jenna was pregnant at the time and it was hard for her to be outside with Logan because she could not chase him if he ran off nor could she have him run around the backyard.

“He’s with us at all times to make sure he doesn’t wander,” Peter said. “His language is very limited. He says two or three words but he can’t consistently answer a question so if he wanders it would be definitely be a problem,” he said.

“We’ve had to add extra locks to our doors, we have gates up in our house,” Jenna said.

While Logan is doing well in school at Leggee Elementary School and in therapy, it’s hard to say whether his impulsiveness will get better, Jenna said.

“We really just kind of deal with things day by day. That’s all you can really do. You welcome what achievements he does have,” she said.

To make the yard safe, the Kulilowskis planned to build a 5-foot security fence in the back yard but were surprised to learn the Cider Grove Home Owner’s Association does not allow such fences on the lots abutting Huntley-Dundee Road. The requirement affects eight homes in the subdivision.

A surprise regulation, a happy resolution

Jenna said the family didn’t know about the restriction until after they were living in the home. “We were suppose to receive a copy of the bylaws, which we didn’t get before the closing,” she said.

Their old Lake in the Hills neighborhood didn’t have any regulations.

The Cider Grove Home Owners Association ruled the fence would be allowed if the village approved amending an ordinance that regulates those eight lots. The family began the process earlier this summer requesting permission from the village. A few hearings were scheduled but pushed back a couple of times earlier this summer.

Village officials said the purpose of the fence ordinance was to have a uniform appearance on the lots and along Huntley-Dundee road. The village board passed the amended ordinance that allows the family to put up the taller fence. Any new fences erected in the future on the seven remaining lots must also be the same type, height and material as the fence to be constructed on the Kulilowski property.

The couple was happy and relieved to be able to start calling contractors to install the fence.

Logan “has a right to enjoy his house,” Jenna said.

And now, he’ll get a chance to enjoy his backyard too.