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Conclusion While the cities of Elgin, St. Charles, and Batavia developed independently from Chicago, the suburbs to the east of the Fox Valley slowly crept toward them, eventually consuming them. Acres of open space and farmland lie to the west of these three cities. It is their challenge to manage expansion into this area and prevent the phenomena of urban sprawl. The negative effects of sprawl are numerous, but there are few, if any, positive effects of such development. The use of growth management tools, including, but not limited to, the ones included in this study, will help curb sprawl. The use of such tools will become even more important in the future as these cities continue to grow and change. All three municipalities have experienced large amounts of growth over the past ten years, and this growth is expected to continue well into the future.Through the research completed for this study, it is evident that these three cities are managing growth in ways that are similar as well as different. Of the three, Batavia appears to be the most reluctant to grow and more interested in curbing growth to the west. This is most evident in the city’s decision to "draw its line in the sand" by capping their municipal treatment plant and not extending it further west. Batavia is also the smallest of the three cities-this community wants to retain the small-town atmosphere and preserve the open land to the west of the city. Elgin is the largest city and is the most aggressive towards promoting growth to the west of Randall Road. While Elgin promotes growth to the west, the city also appears to be concerned with managing this growth. Of the six growth management elements included in the matrix, Elgin is utilizing five of them. The city is also not allowing western growth to further affect the downtown by promoting historic preservation and approving the Downtown/Riverfront Masterplan. In terms of growth, St. Charles falls somewhere in the middle of Batavia and Elgin. The city has historically been conservative towards new growth. This characteristic appears to still hold true, although it is difficult to resist developing Randall Road when neighboring communities are doing so. St. Charles has the most focus on the downtown area, which will help retain a sense of place for the community and assist in combating other negative effects of sprawl development. It is vital to the future of each city that they follow their comprehensive plans and keep these documents updated in order to address issues that currently face the city. St. Charles has the most current comprehensive plan, last updated in May of 1996. Batavia’s comprehensive plan was last updated in 1993. Since this plan is eight years old and the city and surrounding areas are experiencing increases in population and are under such high growth pressures, Batavia should consider updating its plan. Elgin has the oldest comprehensive plan-almost eighteen years old-and is currently in the lengthy process of updating it. Kane County’s 2020 plan will be revised in the summer of 2001-a process that will take place every five years. The use of additional plans is also important to emphasize specific areas of the city. This includes Elgin’s Far West Planning Area Development and Design Guidelines, and the Downtown St. Charles Strategic Plan. If these three cities continue to utilize growth management tools-or even adopt others-the future of the area looks positive. It is also vital that these three cities work with Kane County and follow the plan the county has developed for the area. The Openlands Project believes Kane County represents one of the bright spots in the Chicago region, "Through outreach and ongoing assistance to its municipalities, Kane County appears to be achieving some success in moderating sprawl from the county-wide perspective" (19). On the downside, the Openlands’ study reports that if development continues at the current pace, the Fox River corridor could be one continuous urban area (19). This is why it is critical for these cities to work with the county in maintaining separate identities-for someone driving down Randall Road to be able to tell which city he is in. It is also important to maintain a transition zone from east to west, as the city becomes the country. Kane County’s vision for the future of the three cities is for them to retain their separate identities and their sense of place. Sam Santell commented:
The county presents an excellent plan to guide the growth of the area. If all three cities adopt these ideals, the growth of these river cities will become more compatible and slow the consumption of land to the west. This study was an excellent opportunity to learn the history of, and current issues facing, these three cities, as well as the Fox Valley region. These cities will continue to grow and change, growth management practices may change, and the attitudes of residents towards new growth may change. The nature of this study is that it may be repeated in five to ten years, and new conclusions about the area may result from the research. Given more time to complete this study, more interviews, especially with residents, would have been completed. Residents often influence the planners of the community, which in turn helps guide the growth of the community. Growth decisions are ultimately left to the individual municipality. However, in areas such as Elgin, St. Charles, and Batavia it appears most logical to grow compatibly with neighboring communities to help ensure the open land to the west is not consumed by sprawling developments as the cities compete for the tax revenue. The Fox Valley region remained separate from Chicago for many years. As the suburbs rapidly consume them, it becomes the responsibility of the cities to retain that separate identity and preserve the agricultural heritage to the west. |
