Man still battling Geneva over windows

A Geneva homeowner who successfully challenged a city ordinance related to window replacement in historic districts now wants to see the local law scrapped entirely.

Walter Stackman says the ordinance flies in the face of the federal efforts to encourage environmentally-friendly property improvements.

"Take a leap into the 21st century and eliminate the old window program," he told aldermen at Tuesday's city council meeting. "If the city finds this impossible, I feel through the federal government, this can be accomplished."

Stackman sued the city's historic preservation commission three years ago after it claimed he needed building permits to replace wood-frame windows with vinyl windows on his 1940s-era house on the 400 block of South Fourth Street. The house is in a historic district, and the new windows were different from the originals.

Although a Kane County judge initially sided with the commission, Stackman won on appeal in July, with the state appellate court ruling Geneva had been "inconsistent in its interpretation and application" of its own ordinance.

Now, as the city considers revising some local laws, Stackman says aldermen should take the opportunity to end "unfair" historic preservation practices.

"We, as property owners, do not need a lot of new rules to live by," he said. "We are property owners - not children."

Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns responded Thursday, saying it would be up to aldermen to decide whether to follow Stackman's advice. He said the local historic preservation ordinance follows national standards, and revising it to address the window issue in particular would be "a real undertaking."

Burns added that, in the interest of saving money on court costs, the city has decided to let the appellate court's decision in the Stackman case stand without appeal.

"The council's certainly aware of Mr. Stackman's concern," he said.

First Ward Alderman Chuck Brown noted at Tuesday's meeting that the city has the ability to overturn any decision by the historic preservation commission.

"I've seen many appeals over the years, some of which the council has overturned the commission," Brown said. "We don't like to do it, but we have in the past."