Schaumburg might tighten rules on portable storage units

Having banned donation boxes in commercial parking lots last month, Schaumburg officials are now turning their attention to the aesthetics of residential neighborhoods with a proposal for stronger restrictions on temporary portable storage units.

If approved, the biggest difference residents would probably notice is a requirement to get a village permit — at no charge — to keep the storage units on site for no more than 45 days.

“It's not that we want to prohibit them, it's that we want to have a reasonable time limit for them,” Community Development Director Julie Fitzgerald said.

For the most part, the rental fees they pay provide residents with an inherent incentive to get such units — like PODS containers — on and off their property as quickly as possible during a move or renovation.

But there have been enough exceptions for village officials to seek a little more incentive to help out others nearby who would otherwise have to live with such eyesores for an extended period.

In one such case, a resident was using a few cargo containers to store her belongings outside while a cleanup of her home's interior was taking place. But due to issues with her insurance company, the cleanup became too expensive to complete immediately and the containers remained outside for much longer than was intended.

The village staff is also seeking to amend the village code to make the maximum size of such units 16 feet by 8 feet, restrict their number, keep them on paved surfaces like driveways and away from streets and sidewalks.

The village's planning, building & development committee Thursday recommended the proposal to the village board.

On Tuesday, trustees will consider sending the proposal to the zoning board of appeals for a public hearing and recommendation of its own.

The village board would cast its final vote on the proposal after that, probably sometime in May, Fitzgerald said.