Neighbors unhappy with noise from business

By Jonathan Turner

ROCK ISLAND -- A neighborhood feud about a business in a residential zone erupted this week before the city council.

After more than four years of operating First Class Window Cleaning out of their home at 4314 28th Ave., Greg and Lisa Kerchner sought a special-use permit to continue operating under restrictions set by aldermen.

They have been operating 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and city staff recommended the business could gain a permit if hours started at 8 a.m. and/or employee vehicles parked off site.

In addition to the Kerchners, two employees work for the company - one of whom comes each morning to pick up a company truck. All the cleaning work is done off site, at 200 commercial clients and more than 300 residential clients around the Quad-Cities, including all local KFC, Hardee's and Taco Bell restaurants.

'We're open for whatever the council is happy with,' Mr. Kerchner said of the staff recommendation.

'The problem arises when you have employees coming into the neighborhood, picking up orders, leaving at all hours of the day and night, and disturbing the peace of the neighborhood,' said Dick Hollenback, who lives next door.

'Our rights have been violated in the last four years,' he said, noting there are many elderly residents on the block. Mr. Hollenback is 76 and still works as a Realtor.

'Did I not earn the right to live in a quiet, peaceful, residential neighborhood?' he asked. 'Apparently not.'

'It is very frustrating to be jolted from a deep sleep as early as 4 a.m., when his workers come to pick up the trucks, rev motors, slam truck doors and transfer equipment and/or supplies from one truck to another,' Mr. Hollenback wrote in a four-page complaint letter to the city.

'It is apparent Mr. Kerchner has no respect for his neighbors,' he wrote. 'I have listed our home for sale. We can no longer tolerate this man and his actions.'

Neighbor John Justice, who got into an argument with Mr. Kerchner one time after being awoken at 4 a.m., said the business is not in character with the neighborhood. There already is limited parking on the street and the business trucks reduce that further, Mr. Justice said.

Greg Klema, another neighbor, wrote that Mr. Kerchner 'is not, nor has he ever been a good neighbor. He has aggravated the Hollenbacks to the point of putting their retirement home up for sale. If Mr. Kerchner is allowed this permit, I too will probably be looking for new residence, and it will not be in Rock Island.'

'I just don't trust him,' Mr. Klema told the council, claiming Mr. Kerchner parks his trucks in front of neighbors' homes and on nearby yards. If he parked the vehicles somewhere else, the neighbors could get along with a home office, Mr. Klema said.

'I've been woke up a couple of mornings,' he said. 'He has a propensity for slamming doors all the time, moving the ladders.'

'We give heavy consideration to what the neighbors' concerns are, to prevent the kind of disturbances these neighbors raise,' Mayor Mark Schwiebert said of special-use permits in general. A 5 a.m. start time in a residential area 'could be pretty offensive,' he said.

Mr. Kerchner had rented another location to store the trucks, but said it was costing the business too much. He hasn't pursued other storage options since then.

'My wife takes care of the billing and office duties, and she has everything at home,' he said. 'To have a storefront would just be an unnecessary expense for my business. We don't need a storefront to draw business. We draw business by referrals. We don't advertise.'

Ald. Chuck Austin, 7th Ward, said the council should try to meet the concerns of neighbors and the business. If they can't park trucks off the street, it's incumbent on the business to find another place to store them and for employees to meet for work, he said.

'When we look at a special-use permit, we take into consideration the neighbors and the feelings of the neighbors,' said Ald. Joy Murphy, 6th Ward. 'It's very important you rally your neighbors in your defense.'

Mr. Kerchner expanded his driveway to allow more vehicles to park there, rather than on the street. One employee doesn't typically start until after 8 a.m., he said.

Starting everyone at 8 might hinder some of the restaurants they serve, Mrs. Kerchner said. They require the cleaning crew to be done before they open, which is usually at 10:30, she said.

'We could do it. It would just make it harder on us,' Mrs. Kerchner said. 'It is doable.'

Ald. Murphy also encouraged them to find a business location to store their trucks and proposed denial of the permit.

Ald. Austin asked that the denial be deferred for two weeks to allow the Kerchners time to find alternate arrangements. That motion was approved 4-3, so the issue will be brought back to council at its Nov. 19 meeting.