Campton Hills annexation toward La Fox debated

A proposed annexation agreement has some residents of unincorporated La Fox worried that the neighboring village of Campton Hills is getting too close for comfort.

If approved by village trustees, the proposal would add about 51 acres of previously unincorporated territory to Campton Hills, edging its border south of Route 38 in La Fox.

Drew Frasz, a Kane County Board member and vice president of the La Fox Civic Organization, said development planned for the site isn't an issue for his community - but encroachment is.

"We had always hoped they (Campton Hills) would respect Route 38 as an unwritten border between our communities," he said. "We just don't feel like Campton Hills; we feel like La Fox."

Campton Hills Village President Patsy Smith said the annexation was requested by a landowner who wants to continue farming about half of the property, and build a seven-home subdivision on the other half.

She said putting the village's southern border north of Route 38 was discussed before Campton Hills won incorporation rights in 2007, but there was no agreement that it wouldn't move.

"It's unfortunate they assumed boundaries would never change," she said. "That's just unreasonable."

Frasz said the landowner brought an annexation proposal to the county more than a year ago and "did not get real positive feedback" because it conflicted with the county's long-term land use plan. But he hopes the owner, who could not be reached for comment, will reconsider that proposal.

"That's certainly his option, but he told me he wants to continue (in the village)," Smith said, noting Campton Hills' development fees would generate more money for local schools than the county's would.

La Fox was settled on about four square miles in the 1840s, Frasz said, and maintains a population of roughly 600.

He said it's "extremely ironic" that Campton Hills, whose incorporation was sparked by Elgin's attempt to annex south, is stirring fears that La Fox eventually will be surrounded or absorbed.

"They had their origins in the fact that Elgin was trying to annex parts of their area," he said. "We never thought in a million years that we'd have our friends to the north be a seeming threat. They understand how passionate our community is."

A public hearing on the proposed annexation took place this week, and Smith said the village board make a decision at its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Campton Township Community Center, 5N082 Old La Fox Road.