ROCKTON, Ill. (WIFR) – Richard Barnes stands with his right hand in the air. The Red Barn Golf Course owner takes an oath before speaking in front of the Village of Rockton Zoning Board of Appeals.

As he faces board members, a crowd of mostly Summit Condos residents fill every seat – with overflow spilling into the Village Hall entrance.

Barnes delivers an appeal to the board: allow his special use permit to build “luxury townhomes” on Red Barn’s driving range. The owner claims a 27% decline in business leaves him no choice but to pivot – potentially constructing multifamily housing on the property.

In July, Summit Condos spoke out against Red Barn’s driving range: a TopTracer by Topgolf system that reportedly leads to golf balls crashing into nearby homes.

On Thursday night, Barnes points to me as he delivers his testimony.

“There was a news report that had some mistruths in it,” he claims. The owner contends Red Barn did its best to avoid hitting the homes – despite what condo owners might say.

Barnes stresses he’s been “denied due process,” since the Village of Rockton amended its public nuisance laws in July. New ordinances fine Red Barn $750 each time a golf ball from the driving range strikes a home.

“Nowhere in the nation [has] that ever been done to a golf course,” according to Barnes’ research with his attorney.

Paul Grossen sits in the audience on Thursday. He and around a dozen other condo owners provide public comment following Barnes’ opening testimony.

Nearly a dozen Summit residents argue the proposed townhouses “don’t make sense.” Different speakers touch on various concerns: heavy traffic, lower water pressure, decreasing property values from new rentals and a “change to the neighborhood character.”

“When you have problems, you have to correct them,” stresses Grossen, who serves as the president of the Summit Condos Association. “That’s your expense, not someone else’s expense.”

I met Grossen in July on his driveway. There, he worried “crashing” golf balls could give neighbors a “heart attack.”

At the zoning meeting, he describes Barnes’ words as too vague for a proposal redeveloping seven acres beside Summit Condos.

“It was like giving an open-ended check, ‘Can you pass something for me? Sure go ahead,’” says Grossen – impersonating the meeting. “You can’t run a village like that.”

After an hour of public comments, the board voted 0-5 against Red Barn’s proposal. The owner believes the decision doesn’t spell the end for development.

“Whatever we need to do to get past the Planning Commission and the Zoning Board of Appeals here” is what Barnes plans going forward. Without the change in revenue stream, he worries Red Barn may not survive – mentioning he and his wife put their retirement funds into the business.

When asked how many fines the golf course has faced since the nuisance took effect in July, Barnes said none were enforced as he negotiated with the village. Still, he claims the fines are coming.

Grossen and Barnes hold hope for a solution: the association president sees that as the golf course’s responsibility; the Red Barn owner contends it’s on condo owners.

“If my neighbors stopped complaining, there’s a possibility we can make the range profitable,” says Barnes.

His next step is attending the Village of Rockton board meeting on Jan. 21 – providing more public comment to advocate for his business. Grossen expects another crowd of condo owners to join.

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