10/02/2026
It’s October. This is when we should be planning to plant bulbs, but another planting season is here, and we’re still dealing with what happened in 2024.
Darby Hills, then a Barrington Hills trustee, submitted the complaint (pictured, obtained from village via FOIA, uncropped version on our website) that led to our u pick getting shut down. She is now an appointed state senator running to represent the 26th District in Illinois.
There is still no resolution. She never acknowledged any invites to visit the farm and learn about it herself. Scheduled meetings with her (as state senator) have been cancelled. And now we’re being flooded with campaign ads telling us how much she cares about her constituents.
We’re her constituents too.
It’s painful to watch that message being promoted while we’re still living with the consequences. And it’s frustrating to hear her supporters retell this story in ways that leave out her role.
If the argument is that this was necessary to “protect the village”, then let’s have an honest conversation about the paid events that take place in Barrington Hills. Who gets to do what around here?
Farming is political when decisions determine if you get another season. We need representatives who will hear from the people affected by their actions, explain their decisions, and stay engaged when the situation becomes difficult. Access and consideration should not depend on who has someone’s ear.
Who represents us locally matters.
