Lee County Planning Commission votes to forward three petitions with Phase 1 environmental study
May 04, 2026 | Lee County, Illinois
This article was created by AI summarizing key points discussed. AI makes mistakes, so for full details and context, please refer to the video of the full meeting. Please report any errors so we can fix them. Report an error »
The Lee County Planning Commission voted Wednesday to forward three related land-use petitions (26PC86, 26PC87 and 26PC88) to the county, directing that each petition include a Phase 1 environmental study.
At the start of the meeting the chair introduced the three petitions under "old business" and said the commission would consider them together. A committee member reported meeting with assistant state's attorney Stephanie Sasser and said Sasser reviewed the minutes and the question about a Tier 1 environmental study; according to the committee member, Sasser and state's attorney Charlie Boonstra agreed the commission had "not gone above and beyond what the state law is trying to accomplish." The committee member added, "She did run it by... and he was in agreement."
Commissioners discussed petition 26PC86 and confirmed the commission wanted the environmental language to specify a "Phase 1" study. A motion to approve petition 26PC86 and send it to the county with the inclusion of the Phase 1 environmental study passed on roll call; members called in the roll (Ben Forster, Ellen Smith, Chris Jones, Amy Palmer, Chuck Beckman) each registered "Aye."
The commission took the same action on petition 26PC87, approving a motion to forward it to the county with the Phase 1 study included. The motion was seconded and carried on a roll-call vote with the same affirmative responses recorded.
When petition 26PC88 was called, Commissioner Amy Palmer stated she would recuse herself from that item and left the immediate area to show nonparticipation. The commission moved and seconded a motion to approve 26PC88 and send it to the county with the environmental impact (Phase 1) study; the roll call (Ben Forster, Ellen Smith, Chris Jones, Chuck Beckman) returned "Aye" votes and the motion carried. Palmer was recorded as recused/abstaining on 26PC88.
The chair called for public comment; none was heard. With no new business, the commission moved to adjourn and ended the meeting.
At the start of the meeting the chair introduced the three petitions under "old business" and said the commission would consider them together. A committee member reported meeting with assistant state's attorney Stephanie Sasser and said Sasser reviewed the minutes and the question about a Tier 1 environmental study; according to the committee member, Sasser and state's attorney Charlie Boonstra agreed the commission had "not gone above and beyond what the state law is trying to accomplish." The committee member added, "She did run it by... and he was in agreement."
Commissioners discussed petition 26PC86 and confirmed the commission wanted the environmental language to specify a "Phase 1" study. A motion to approve petition 26PC86 and send it to the county with the inclusion of the Phase 1 environmental study passed on roll call; members called in the roll (Ben Forster, Ellen Smith, Chris Jones, Amy Palmer, Chuck Beckman) each registered "Aye."
The commission took the same action on petition 26PC87, approving a motion to forward it to the county with the Phase 1 study included. The motion was seconded and carried on a roll-call vote with the same affirmative responses recorded.
When petition 26PC88 was called, Commissioner Amy Palmer stated she would recuse herself from that item and left the immediate area to show nonparticipation. The commission moved and seconded a motion to approve 26PC88 and send it to the county with the environmental impact (Phase 1) study; the roll call (Ben Forster, Ellen Smith, Chris Jones, Chuck Beckman) returned "Aye" votes and the motion carried. Palmer was recorded as recused/abstaining on 26PC88.
The chair called for public comment; none was heard. With no new business, the commission moved to adjourn and ended the meeting.
Don't Miss a Word: See the Full Meeting!
Go beyond summaries. Unlock every video, transcript, and key insight with a Founder Membership.
✓
Get instant access to full meeting videos
✓
Search and clip any phrase from complete transcripts
✓
Receive AI-powered summaries & custom alerts
✓
Enjoy lifetime, unrestricted access to government data
30-day money-back guarantee
