La Salle National Trust, N.A. v. Village of Mettawa
616 N.E.2d 1297, 186 Ill. Dec. 665, 249 Ill. App. 3d 550 (1993)
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Rule of Law:
A home rule municipality's ordinance cannot impose additional requirements, such as a public referendum, upon the statutory process for disconnecting land, because the alteration of municipal boundaries is a matter of statewide concern that does not pertain to the municipality's local government and affairs.
Facts:
- The Village of Mettawa, a home rule municipality, maintained zoning aimed at preserving a rural residential character with large, five-acre lots.
- W.W. Grainger, Inc. (Grainger), through a land trust held by La Salle National Trust, acquired 517 acres of land within the Village, comprising 11 contiguous parcels.
- The 517-acre property represented approximately 15% of the Village's total acreage and 42% of its remaining vacant land.
- In 1989, Grainger applied to the Village to rezone the property to develop an office complex for its corporate headquarters.
- Grainger later withdrew its rezoning application.
- On the same day it withdrew the application, Grainger initiated legal proceedings to disconnect its property from the Village.
- The Village had previously passed Ordinance 196, which required that any court order granting disconnection be submitted to a binding public referendum of Village voters.
Procedural Posture:
- La Salle National Trust and W.W. Grainger, Inc. filed a petition in the circuit court of Lake County to disconnect territory from the Village of Mettawa.
- The Village of Mettawa and certain Village residents were named as respondents.
- The Village filed a motion to strike and dismiss the petition, which the trial court denied.
- During trial, at the close of the petitioners' case, the Village moved for a directed verdict, which the trial court also denied.
- After a bench trial, the circuit court entered an order granting the petition for disconnection, finding that petitioners had met all statutory requirements and that the Village's disconnection ordinance was invalid and unenforceable.
- The Village of Mettawa and the residents, as appellants, appealed the circuit court's order to the Illinois Appellate Court, Second District.
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Issue:
Does a home rule municipality's ordinance that requires a public referendum to approve a court-ordered disconnection of land exceed its constitutional home rule authority?
Opinions:
Majority - Justice Unverzagt
Yes, the ordinance exceeds the municipality's constitutional home rule authority. A home rule unit's power is limited to matters pertaining to its own government and affairs. While disconnection affects the municipality, the alteration of municipal boundaries is primarily a matter of statewide concern, as the state legislature has plenary power over the creation and boundaries of its political subdivisions. The state has traditionally played the dominant role in regulating disconnection, and the disconnection statute provides a comprehensive judicial procedure without any role for a local referendum. Furthermore, the ordinance impermissibly interferes with the judicial system. The disconnection statute mandates that if a petitioner meets all statutory requirements, the court 'shall order' the disconnection, leaving no room for judicial discretion. The ordinance attempts to subject this mandatory court order to a local veto, thereby infringing upon the function and authority of the state judiciary.
Analysis:
This decision clarifies a significant limitation on municipal home rule power in Illinois by categorizing the alteration of municipal boundaries as a matter of statewide concern. It prevents home rule units from creating unique procedural barriers to disconnection, thereby ensuring a uniform, statewide standard governed exclusively by the state's disconnection statute. The ruling reinforces the principle that the legislature controls the existence and boundaries of municipalities and solidifies the judiciary's non-discretionary role in ordering disconnection once statutory conditions are met. This precedent will likely prevent municipalities from using home rule authority to frustrate statutory property rights related to disconnection.
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