North Cook News

Elk Grove Village resident Dawn Jablonski fears lawmakers in Springfield have a one-track mind when it comes annexation plans for the area she calls home.

A number of homeowners living in the village near O’Hare International Airport share Jablonski’s fears about possibly being forced from their homes, insisting they’re now living in no man’s land over a bill now being pushed in Springfield that they see as a scheme to pave the way for Elk Grove Village leaders to do what they’re truly looking to do.

“We're not quite sure what his next move will be because they didn't introduce (the bill),” Jablonski added. “So it's just one thing after another and it's just exhausting. It's just there's always something else. We always have to be on our toes. We're always attending board meetings and, you know, sitting in on committee meetings and talking and researching and, you know, just to try to stay on top of it or ahead of them.”

Jablonski says documents show land-grab efforts have been afloat since at least 2008.

“It proves to me that [Mayor Craig Johnson has] always wanted us,” she told CBS Chicago News, pointing to paperwork that shows the Ropollo subdivision under a heading “Residential Developed [sic] To Be Annexed.”

Meanwhile, the bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines), continues to insist the proposed measure is only intended to clear up confusion about what can and can’t be legally done.

“This [legislation] could affect further annexations down the road for other towns, and this town, but we have no plans – Elk Grove Village has no plans – to annex any part of anybody’s personal property right now,” Moylan told CBS Chicago.

Mayor Johnson has also gone on record in insisting Senate Bill 658 has nothing to do with the Ropollo subdivision and would not affect property there.

Still, suspicious abound.

“There’s a lot of sleepless nights,” Jablonski added. “It’s just an ongoing fight.”