Before LaSalle County Board members vote on changing zoning for a rail terminal near Triumph, most board members want to see the land’s LESA score. That’s the Land Evaluation Site Assessment score. The number is meant to say how good the land is for farming. The County Board and other decision making bodies in Illinois can use it to decide whether land should stay a farm or become something else.
The county’s Zoning Board of Appeals recommended the zoning change from agricultural to industrial. The County Board tabled it last week, because that LESA score wasn’t supplied. Land Use Department Director Brian Gift says LaSalle County Leasing Group wants a rail terminal northeast of the Interstate 39 and U.S. 52 intersection. The farm land is alongside the railroad track that runs from Triumph to Troy Grove.