The owner of UpRising Bakery and Cafe in Lake in the Hills, which was vandalized last week with hateful messages, says the village has ordered their business to stop hosting entertainment events.
Corinna Sac said she received a letter on Friday following a meeting with the Village of Lake in the Hills.
The letter ordered Sac’s business to stop hosting entertainment events, saying that UpRising was not zoned for them.
The village said they would pursue “appropriate enforcement actions” if the business continued hosting events.
The letter said that municipal code and zoning ordinance violations could be issued against Sac and her landlord. The village also said they could suspend or revoke business licenses.
“We’ve been holding events pretty much since the day we’ve opened. Live music, or paint and sips, cookie making classes and cake decorating classes,” Sac said.
“It is essential for UpRising to be able to host these events. It is what bridges the gap in our daily sales to ensure we can pay our rent, pay our taxes, and pay our employees,” Sac said.
Sac said she feels like this is “discrimination and a conspiracy to interfere with my business.”
In a lengthy statement provided to ABC7 Chicago, the Village of Lake in the Hills said, “This issue is about a business conducting activities it was never permitted to conduct. While the potential revenue from these entertainment events may be attractive to the business owner, the Village is seeking compliance with its zoning regulations.”
The village said in the statement that they received complaints from the property owner and tenants of Cedar Ridge Plaza, as well as nearby residences, regarding loss of business, parking, safety concerns and zoning violations, as a result of the business’ events.
“Ms. Sac stated she now sees the potential revenue from these entertainment events as being essential to her business. She was clear that her intent was to continue offering entertainment on a more frequent and extended basis. Her acknowledgement of this change to her business model, has required the Village to consider the zoning concerns, as the operation of an entertainment business is not a permitted use at that location,” the village’s statement said.
UpRising sustained significant damage early in the morning on July 23.
Officers found broken windows and hateful messages spray painted on the building.
Lake in the Hills officers, along with the Algonquin police sergeant, took Joseph I. Collins, 24, of the 11700 block of South Ridgeway Avenue in Alsip, into custody.
Collins was charged with hate crime, a Class 4 felony, and criminal damage to property, a Class 4 felony.
UpRising was scheduled to host a family-friendly drag show later that same day. Sac canceled the event due to the incident.
Sac said that her business began receiving in-person and online threats earlier this month after they announced they were hosting the drag show where children were welcome to attend.
The Lake in the Hills Police Department said in a statement at the time that their priority is the “safety and constitutional rights of everyone.”
“The Police Department is disheartened this happened in our Village, remain steadfast in our commitment to public safety and have zero tolerance to crimes against all members our community,” the department said.
A GoFundMe account started by a customer of UpRising raised almost $15,000 for the establishment following the vandalism.