An Aug. 20 video that Konni Vukelic recorded showing Marengo public works employees removing plantings from around her property has been viewed 2.4 million times on X after it was reshared a week later.

On the video, Vukelic said she already had removed plantings, including tall sunflowers, from the corner of her property, working with Marengo officials to clear out the city’s right-of-way and sight lines before crews showed up.

But Vukelic said she was blindsided when city workers rolled in to take away remaining plants on the corner, as well as trees and raised planting beds that she had installed along the edge of the street – in the city-controlled right-of-way.

“One more time before the village takes it all down,” Vukelic said on the now-viral video.

Officials with the city of Marengo, however, said they also tried to work with Vukelic over the course of several weeks – from July 16 to Aug. 20 – to address sight-line problems her plantings caused other residents.

Starting in mid-July, at least five complaints came from neighbors saying the intersection in question was becoming dangerous, as drivers could not see around the corner for oncoming traffic, according to an email from Marengo City Administrator Derik Morefield.

“This is not a controlled four-way intersection. There is only a stop sign for east and westbound movements,” Morefield said. “The north-south traffic does not stop. In this instance, the vegetation within the sight triangle and public right-of-way obstructed the views of both eastbound traffic ... and southbound traffic.”

Morefield, the retired McHenry city administrator, has been working part time in the Marengo slot since early 2025.

Because of the viral nature of Vukelic’s video, Morefield said he and other city staff have gotten rude and threatening emails and voicemails from people not from the McHenry County area.

Marengo also had warned Vukelic in December that the plantings in the right-of-way were not permitted, and a notice was sent to Vukelic about the plantings along the road. That undated letter, provided to the Northwest Herald via a Freedom of Information Act request, indicates that Vukelic’s property was in violation of Ordinance 6.05 and she had until Dec. 10, 2024, to establish compliance.

A photo was included in that letter showing cars parked along the street and what appears to be raised planters in the right-of-way. According to an attached copy of the ordinance, including Section 6.05: “No person shall place any material on or over any street, sidewalk or public place without a permit from the City Council.”

There is no indication of how this letter was provided to Vukelic, and Morefield said he is unaware of any follow-up to that warning letter.

Vukelic also said she was not aware of a letter that the city left on the door of her home July 16 informing her of an issue with her garden, including sunflowers and other tall plants blocking the views for drivers. That letter gave her five days to clear the plantings.

Vukelic is a beekeeper, selling honey and other bee products at a Marengo store. She keeps her bees at locations around northern Illinois and Wisconsin.

She also is a first-time homeowner, having bought the house in July 2024.

“I was excited to have all of this land to grow things on. I used to grow tomatoes in 5-gallon buckets” as a renter, Vukelic said.

What she didn’t understand was the right-of-way issue, and that not all of the land she believed was part of her new home also was available for plantings, Vukelic said.

She said she finally became aware of the city’s complaint on July 30, when the code enforcement officer came to her store, Three Bees Honey Farms, in Marengo. That date is confirmed in Aug. 5 emails between Vukelic and Marianne Wayne, the code enforcement officer.

In that Aug. 5 email, Wayne wrote that she had spoken to the city’s attorney and that Vukelic was allowed “one more day to become compliant before further action is taken. This is a safety matter.”

When a city crew showed up Aug. 20, staff found the property pins to show the line between her property and the city right-of-way, according to an email from Marengo Public Works Director Chad Roscoe. He’d met with Vukelic previously – including on his personal time – to offer assistance, he said.

Vukelic said she was trying to solve the problem, but she added that between her storefront, attending farmers markets where she sells her honey and harvesting honey from her far-flung apiaries, time also was an issue for her.

She also didn’t understand that the corner plantings and sight lines were a problem.

“It was foreign to me. I have not ever lived on a corner. I had no awareness of these things. There was no harm meant,” Vukelic said, adding that she also understands that it needed to be addressed.

Ultimately, no planting outside of the city’s right-of-way were removed, Morefield said.

“City staff, including the city attorney, spent significant time ... attempting to educate, explain and even offer assistance on personal time to mitigate the situation” in July and August, Morefield said. “Ultimately, given the life-safety issue related to the restricted sight lines, the city was obligated to take action on its own.”