The "Greenbelt"
Our greenbelt makes us unique!
As most of our residents know, Greenhills is one of three federally planned and constructed greenbelt communities in the nation. (The other two greenbelt communities are Greenbelt, Maryland and Greendale, Wisconsin.) Undertaken by the government in the 1930’s, the purpose of the federal greenbelt project was to supply jobs and to offer an escape from the congested inner city neighborhoods through the construction of a small town with plenty of park-like areas surrounded by a greenbelt.
It may interest you to know that of the three greenbelt communities, Greenhills is the only one that has maintained its greenbelt.
The original “garden city” plan for the Greenhills remains intact: curving streets, walking paths, superblocks, and the encircling greenbelt.
The greenbelt offers a very unique quality to our community. Not only is it a natural buffer of greenery, it also protects from encroaching development.
However, even within Greenhills, the concept of greenbelt is often misunderstood:
> Some think any greenspace or park in the Village is greenbelt - but it is not. In Greenhills, we actually have a zoning district entitled: greenbelt. That Greenbelt zone – for the most part – encircles the community.
> Some think it must be publicly owned for it to be greenbelt - but it does not. A lot of our greenbelt is privately owned.
> Some think that if they consolidate their parcels into one it will change the zoning to residential - but it will not.
> Some think that if they own greenbelt land they can use it as they please – but they cannot. The only uses that are currently permitted in the Greenbelt zone (whether publicly or privately owned) include public park reservation and playgrounds, public recreational buildings, allotment gardens (now known as community gardens), farms, nurseries and gardens; public utilities; bus passenger stations; or signs erected by public authorities.
OBTAIN A PERMIT BEFORE REMOVING TREES IN THE GREENBELT
In the Greenbelt district no tree may be trimmed or cut down and removed, nor any other natural forest growth trimmed or removed unless a permit is first obtained from the Village. Call the Village at 825-2100 for more information.
