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Gurnee still mulling RV parking

Plans to enact additional regulations on recreational vehicle owners are on hold until next month in Gurnee, as village board trustees consider refining the proposed ordinance.

Trustees had been scheduled to take a final vote on the ordinance Monday night, but they agreed to postpone action until March 15 after hearing concerns from some residents and discussing the issue among themselves.

RVs include campers, boats, snowmobiles, haul trailers and personal watercraft. Gurnee's regulations for residential property allow RVs to be parked or stored on a hard surface pad without the wheels removed.

One of the proposed changes in Gurnee's ordinance would allow only a property owner to park an RV at a home. The number of RVs also could be restricted depending on lot size.

Village Attorney Bryan Winter said at Monday's meeting that officials have been listening to the community concerning RV parking.

"This was really a process," Winter said of the proposed ordinance changes. "This is not something staff thought of."

Resident complaints and the fact Gurnee's RV parking ordinance is 29 years old were cited by officials as reasons to study the regulations.

Although a village survey on RV parking generated only 234 resident responses, joint plan commission-zoning board of appeals workshops on the ordinance were held last May, June and September. A formal public hearing before the advisory groups occurred in November.

Mayor Kristina Kovarik said aesthetic problems start when RVs are not kept to a solid surface.