Will County Zoning Ordinance: Districts, Applications, and Hearings

The Will County zoning ordinance, codified in Chapter 155 of the county code, divides unincorporated land into agricultural, residential, commercial, and industrial districts and sets specific rules for what you can build and how you can use each parcel. If you want to change your property’s classification or do something the current district doesn’t permit, you file one of three applications with the Land Use Department, present your case at a public hearing before the Planning and Zoning Commission, and wait for a final vote from the County Board. Filing fees run from $200 for a minor variance to well over $2,500 for commercial rezonings, and most applications take three to five months from filing to decision.

Where the Ordinance Applies

Chapter 155 governs only unincorporated Will County. If your property sits inside Joliet, Plainfield, Naperville, or any other incorporated municipality, that city or village’s zoning code controls instead.¹ Check your mailing address against municipal boundaries before you spend time with Will County’s forms.

State law also prevents the county from using zoning to strip away a lawful existing use. If your property was being used in a particular way when the ordinance (or an amendment to it) took effect, that use is protected, though the county retains some power to plan for the gradual phasing out of nonconforming uses over time.¹

The Four District Categories

Every parcel of unincorporated land falls into one of four broad categories, each divided into progressively more intense subdistricts.²

Agricultural (A-1, A-2) preserves farmland with large minimum lot sizes and farming-oriented permitted uses.
Residential (R-1 through R-7) runs from low-density single-family (R-1) up to higher-density multi-family (R-7).
Commercial (C-1 through C-6) runs from small neighborhood retail to regional shopping and service centers.
Industrial (I-1, I-2) covers lighter warehouse and industrial uses (I-1) and heavier manufacturing (I-2), deliberately separated from residential areas.

Your district determines nearly everything about the property, from the type of business you can run to how tall a building can be. You can look up your current designation through the Will County Land Use Department using your Property Index Number.

Permitted Uses, Special Uses, and Dimensional Rules

Within each district, activities fall into two tiers. Permitted uses are yours by right: if the ordinance lists retail sales as a permitted use in C-2 and your property is zoned C-2, you can open a shop without special approval. Special uses are activities the ordinance recognizes might fit the district but only after a case-by-case public review. A church in a residential zone or a cell tower on commercial land typically falls in this second tier.³

Separate from use rules, every district imposes dimensional standards that control the physical footprint of what you build: minimum lot sizes, maximum building heights, and setbacks from the front, side, and rear property lines.⁴ Accessory structures (detached garages, sheds, fences) have their own placement and size rules, and these are where homeowners most often run into code enforcement. Easements for utilities or drainage further limit where you can build, because you can’t put a structure over an easement any more than you can inside a setback.

Nonconforming Uses and the One-Year Trap

When the county changes a district’s rules, properties being used lawfully under the old rules don’t become illegal overnight. The use becomes a legal nonconforming use (what people commonly call “grandfathered in”) and can continue.⁵

That protection has a hard edge. A nonconforming use is presumed abandoned if it stops for one continuous year or more. Once abandoned, the nonconforming status is gone permanently, and any future use must comply with the current district. You can rebut the presumption by showing the Zoning Administrator that you maintained the property, actively marketed it for sale or lease for that specific use, or took other steps showing you did not intend to walk away. Periods of inactivity caused by government action, fire, or natural disaster don’t count toward the one-year clock.⁵ If you own a nonconforming property and expect an extended pause in operations, document everything.

Pick the Right Application

People use “rezoning” as a catch-all, but the county actually recognizes three distinct applications. Filing the wrong one costs time and money.

Map Amendments

A map amendment changes your property’s underlying zoning district. If you own A-1 Agricultural land and want to build a residential subdivision, you need a map amendment to one of the R districts. This is the most significant type of change because it permanently alters what the property can be used for. Map amendments go through the Planning and Zoning Commission and require County Board approval.⁶

Special Use Permits

A special use permit lets you operate a use the ordinance already allows in your district on a case-by-case basis. You aren’t changing the district, just asking for permission to run that specific use. The PZC holds a public hearing and recommends approval, approval with conditions, or denial, and the County Board makes the final call.³ Conditions are common, and in recent decisions the Board has tended to adopt the PZC’s recommended conditions as part of its final approval.⁷

Variances

A variance doesn’t change your district or add a new use. It provides relief from a specific dimensional requirement (a setback, a lot coverage limit) when strict enforcement would cause practical difficulty or particular hardship. Illinois law requires that any variance stay “in harmony with” the general purpose of the zoning regulations. A minor variance of 10 percent or less on setback or bulk requirements can be granted administratively without a public hearing, as long as adjoining owners are notified by certified mail and none files a written objection within 15 days. Anything larger requires a full public hearing.⁸

What You Need to File

All three application types require a documentation package, and missing pieces will stall your filing at intake. At minimum, assemble:

Legal description of the property (metes-and-bounds or lot-and-block).
Proof of ownership (deed or current title insurance policy).
Plat of survey prepared by a licensed Illinois land surveyor showing lot lines, setbacks, and existing structures. Three copies are required.⁹
Site plan showing existing conditions and proposed development. If the project triggers stormwater review under the Water Resource Ordinance, the site plan must be signed and sealed by an Illinois-licensed professional engineer.⁹
Written narrative explaining why the request meets county criteria. For a variance, describe the specific hardship that strict enforcement would cause.
Property Index Number, owner name and address, and the exact nature of the requested change.

Planned unit developments carry an extra step. The preliminary plat and preliminary plat application must be submitted to the Development Review Division at least 30 days before the zoning application for the special use permit is filed.⁴

Fees and Other Costs

No application is accepted without the filing fee, and the County Board only waives fees case by case.¹⁰ Administrative variances are a flat $200.¹¹

Map amendments cost more. Residential and agricultural rezonings start at $675 for parcels up to one acre, $1,250 for up to five acres, and progressively higher per-acre surcharges for larger tracts. Commercial and industrial rezonings start at $2,500 for up to five acres. A 50-acre commercial rezoning would run roughly $4,200 plus per-acre fees.¹⁰ Confirm current rates with the Land Use Department before filing, since the schedule changes periodically.

Beyond the filing fee, budget for a certified plat of survey (typically $500 to $1,200 or more depending on parcel size and complexity), engineering fees if a sealed site plan is required, and the cost of publishing a legal notice in a local newspaper. Those publication costs fall on the applicant.

The Public Hearing and Final Vote

Once your application is accepted as complete, the Planning and Zoning Commission schedules a public hearing. Illinois law requires at least 15 days’ published notice before the hearing, in a newspaper of general circulation in the township where the property sits. The notice must identify the property by legal description and street address, name the applicant and the principal behind the request, and briefly describe what’s proposed.⁸ For special use permits, Will County also requires a notice sign posted on the subject property itself.³

At the hearing, the applicant presents evidence, and members of the public can testify for or against the request. The PZC then votes a recommendation to the County Board, which holds final authority.⁷ The recommendation carries weight but isn’t binding, and the Board can go the other way. Plan on three to five months from a complete filing to a final vote, depending on the Board’s meeting schedule and whether issues arise during review.

What Approval Does and Doesn’t Give You

A yes vote from the County Board doesn’t mean construction can start. Rezoning or a special use permit changes what the land can legally be used for; it doesn’t replace the building permit. You still apply through the Will County Building Division, submit the required plats and site plans (again, three copies of each), and pay separate permit fees before any construction begins.⁹ If the project triggers stormwater requirements, a site development fee stacks on top of the building permit fee.

Any conditions attached to your approval (landscaping buffers, traffic improvements, limits on operating hours) are binding. Violating them can result in revocation.

If You’re Denied

A denial isn’t necessarily the end. A property owner can challenge a zoning decision by filing a complaint in circuit court. The court reviews whether the decision had a rational basis and whether the current classification as applied to your property is reasonable. A successful challenge typically requires showing that the zoning is arbitrary, has no reasonable relationship to public health, safety, or welfare, or is inconsistent with the character of the surrounding area.

Judicial review isn’t a chance to re-present your case. The court looks at whether the Board acted within its legal authority. Overturning a zoning denial is difficult and expensive, and in many cases a modified proposal that addresses the Board’s specific concerns on a fresh application is the faster path.

Federal Laws That Can Override a County Decision

The county’s zoning authority is broad but has limits that applicants sometimes miss.

The Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act require local governments to grant reasonable modifications to zoning rules when necessary to give a person with a disability equal opportunity to use a home. A wheelchair ramp that extends into a setback, or a group home for people with disabilities in a single-family zone, can require accommodation. Rules that single out group homes for people with disabilities, such as minimum spacing requirements not applied to other residential uses, risk violating federal law.

The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act protects houses of worship and religious schools from zoning discrimination. A county can’t, for example, require churches to obtain special exception permits while allowing secular assembly uses like theaters as of right.¹²

If your property contains wetlands or borders navigable waters, federal environmental law adds a layer the county can’t waive. Any project that places fill material into wetlands or waterways requires a Section 404 permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before construction, regardless of what the county approves.¹³ Will County has significant floodplain and wetland areas, so this is a common surprise. Clearing the county process and then discovering a federal wetlands requirement is one of the more expensive mistakes in local land development.

1
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 55 ILCS 5/5-12001
2
Will County. Will County Code Chapter 155, Appendix 155-4.30
3
Will County. Will County Code 155-16.40 – Special Use Permits
4
Will County Government. Will County Subdivision Engineering Check List Preliminary Plat
5
American Legal Publishing. Will County Code 155-15.30 – Nonconforming Uses
6
Will County Illinois. Current Planning and Zoning – Will County Illinois
7
Will County Board. Will County Board Minutes – August 21, 2025
8
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 55 ILCS 5/5-12009
9
Will County. Will County Land Use Department Permit Application
10
Will County. Will County Land Use Department Fee Schedule
11
American Legal Publishing. Will County Code 158.01 – Land Use Fee Schedule
12
United States Department of Justice. Justice Department Resolves Lawsuit Against Pennsylvania Borough Alleging Its Zoning Code Violated Religious Land Use Provisions
13
eCFR. Title 40 Chapter I Subchapter H Part 232 – 404 Program Definitions; Exempt Activities Not Requiring 404 Permits