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Docket No. 97317-Agenda 20-May 2004.
THE WAUCONDA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, Appellee, v.
STONEWALL ORCHARDS, LLP, et al. (Lake County, Illinois,
Appellant).

Opinion filed March 24, 2005.

JUSTICE GARMAN delivered the opinion of the court:

Plaintiff, the Wauconda Fire Protection District (District), soughtdeclaratory and injunctive relief against defendants, Lake County,Illinois (County), and Stonewall Orchards, LLP (Stonewall), after theCounty approved new construction by Stonewall despite Stonewall'snoncompliance with a District ordinance. Defendants filed motions todismiss, which the circuit court of Lake County granted. The Districtappealed, and the appellate court affirmed in part, reversed in part,and remanded the cause to the circuit court. 343 Ill. App. 3d 374. Wegranted leave to appeal. 177 Ill. 2d R. 315. The issues now before usare whether this court has jurisdiction to hear the matter before it and,if so, whether the District's ordinance is enforceable againstStonewall. We hold that jurisdiction is proper, and that the District'sordinance is enforceable. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of theappellate court, which remanded the cause for further proceedings.

BACKGROUND

Stonewall, a private entity, operates a golf course located withinthe common boundaries of unincorporated Lake County and theDistrict. In November 1999, Stonewall submitted plans to the Countyand the District for construction of a clubhouse on the golf course.The initial plans provided for a sprinkler system. A revised version ofthe plans did not. The County approved the revised plans and issueda building permit to Stonewall in October 2001.

During construction of the clubhouse, the District informedStonewall that a District fire protection ordinance required theclubhouse to have a sprinkler system. The ordinance provides:

"An automatic fire sprinkler system, approved by theWauconda Fire Protection District, shall be installed in allnew construction of buildings of the following use groups asdefined by the BOCA Building Code, 1993 Edition;Assembly, Business, Education, Factory and Industrial, HighHazard, Institutional, Mercantile, Residential R1, R2, R3, andStorage." Wauconda Fire Protection District Fire SprinklerOrdinance, No. 98-0-5 (eff. November 27, 1998).

Unlike the District's sprinkler ordinance, the County's building codedoes not require the installation of a sprinkler system in the clubhouse.According to the County's code, structures such as the clubhouse,which fall into the "Assembly" use group, are only required to containan "automatic fire suppression system" where the "fire area exceeds10,000 square feet." BOCA National Building Code 1999,