Elburn Herald
Nov. 30, 2006
The
Illinois Department of Transportation will select a route for the
Prairie Parkway soon after the beginning of the year, giving the public
one more chance to comment on the final two alternatives.
Public hearings
are scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 6, in Yorkville, and Thursday, Dec.
7, in Morris. A public comment period has been scheduled through Jan.
16, 2007, during which time people may provide feedback to IDOT via its
website, by mail or by phone.
The draft
environmental impact study—including exhibits, drawings, maps and
aerial photographs—will be available during the hearings, as well
as at public libraries throughout the study area during the comment
period.
The final two
routes selected in October 2005 are basically the same from Interstate
88 south through Kane County. One alternative, named B5 by IDOT,
generally follows the protected corridor sited by the state in 2001,
with some modifications. IDOT engineer Rick Powell said the department
has made some “small tweaks” in the original path of both
alternatives, based on feedback from various constituents.
Route B5 begins
at Interstate 88 east of Kaneville and curves to the east, south of
Caton Farm Road in Kendall County, ending at Interstate 80 west of
Minooka in Grundy County.
The second
option, B2, follows the same route through Kane County, but continues
in a straight line south to meet with Route 80 west of Morris. Both
options include widening Route 47 from Caton Farm Road to I-80.
Both routes have intersections planned for Routes 30, 34, 71 and 52, while B5 would also have an intersection at Route 47.
The option not
to build is still on the table, said Powell. The no-build option does
not address the needs that IDOT has established for the study area, he
added.
Powell said that
the B2 route offers more “regional” mobility, which means
that it allows people to move through the region on their way to
somewhere else. This option costs less because it is a shorter route,
which also lessens its environmental impact.
He explained that the B5 route provides people within the region as well as outside of it easier access to jobs.
Opposition groups meet with IDOT officials this week
IDOT invited
groups such as the Citizens Against the Sprawlway (CAS) and the
Conservation Foundation, who have opposed the highway, to a more
informal meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30. The meeting will be held
at the old Kendall County Courthouse in Yorkville and is open to the
public.
“It's a
chance for us to get our final questions answered,” said Jan
Strasma, head of CAS. “Now we can continue to make our views
known.”
Strasma complimented IDOT on its process, if not its outcome. “They've done a good job of reaching out to all groups, including their opponents,” he said.
Strasma
said that even the shortened version of the road, the 12 miles for
which funding has been provided, would be disastrous for Kane County.
“It
will destroy good farmland, encourage further sprawl and have negative
environmental impacts,” said Strasma. “It will cross Big
Rock Creek three times.”
He added that
while it is good to look at widening Route 47 around Yorkville, he said
he doesn't understand why IDOT does not have plans to continue to widen
it until it reaches I-88. He explained that the Prairie Parkway study
shows widening Route 47 south of Yorkville and the Governor's Jobs for
Illinois Program includes widening it through Yorkville, while the
state plan includes study money to look at widening it in the Sugar
Grove area.
“You would expect a more unified approach,” said Strasma. “They're piecemealing it.”
Local officials weigh in
Municipal officials within Kane County are already moving on from
providing feedback on whether or not the road should be built and are
voicing their preferences on potential road closures and other local
issues along the proposed highway.
Big Rock Village
President Doug Porch said there is a growth pattern in this area, with
or without the Prairie Parkway, and that building the highway will make
increase the pace and concentration of growth.
“But
studies say we'll be bottle-necked in 10 years without it,” he
explained. “It's a necessary item for the future."
“We wish it wouldn't cut right through our town,” he added.
“Anywhere you go, you're going to disrupt someone.”
He explained that he felt he had to look at the road as a positive for the future.
I can't be naïve and say growth is not going to happen,” he said.
The
Sugar Grove Village Board adopted a resolution at its Nov. 7 meeting in
support of keeping Wheeler Road open after construction of the Prairie
Parkway. Both Wheeler and Lasher roads are slated for closure once the
highway is built.
“We've learned from our experience in the past when I-88 was put
in,” said Sugar Grove Village President Sean Michels. “When
I-88 was built, IDOT closed down Norris Road on either side of the
tollway. Once a road is closed, it's nearly impossible to reopen
it.”
Michels views
Wheeler Road as a collector road that would allow local residents to
get to and from work once the Prairie Parkway is built, without having
to use Route 30.
“Route 30 is going to be a really busy road once the Prairie Parkway is built,” he explained.
Michels said that he and other Sugar Grove officials have talked with
Big Rock officials about joining them in suggesting that IDOT keep
Wheeler Road open. He said that once the Prairie Parkway is built,
closing Wheeler Road would mean the Big Rock Fire Protection District
emergency vehicles would have to go out of their way to get to a fire
or an accident.
Porch agreed
with Michels that Wheeler Road should be kept open. However, he said
that a bridge would have to be built by the county or the state, and
both are saying to close it.
Powell explained
that the decision about whether or not to close a road would be based
on three factors: the costs associated with the decision, its impacts
on emergency services and potential future developments in the
immediate area.
He said the
decision to keep a road open does often mean that a bridge must be
built over the highway, which is very expensive. He explained that the
funding to build bridges where municipalities have successfully fought
to keep roads open would need to be paid with local funds. For Wheeler
Road, it would most likely fall to the county, he said.
Big Rock
officials were successful in convincing IDOT to move the Route 30
interchange one-half mile to the north of where it had originally been
planned. The plans now include the relocation of a stretch of Route 30
to the north, allowing for an interchange along the relocated portion
of Route 30 east of Dauberman Road.
“This sets up a place to have a bypass around Big Rock,” explained Powell.
Funding the project
Funding
continues to be a question for the $1 billion, 35-mile highway. The
federal transportation bill passed last year only allowed for $207
million of the total cost of the project, and a state match is needed
to obtain that amount.
Because the bill
specifically earmarked some of the funding for an interchange at Route
34, IDOT decided to begin the project along a 12-mile stretch between
Route 71 and Route 30.
Powell said IDOT
often builds roads one section at a time, as the money becomes
available. He added that construction of a highway often spans several
administrations. For example, he said that it took 20 years for Route
39 to be built.
“We
usually don't get $1 billion plopped in our lap at once,” Powell
said. “Nearly every road is built this way.”
He said he
anticipates that the state will come through with its matching funds.
He explained that the state's budget is only voted on one year at a
time, even though the plans extend six years into the future. He said
the state does show money for the project in the years 2008-12.
Next steps
Two public
hearings are scheduled; one on Wednesday, Dec. 6, in Yorkville and
another on Thursday, Dec. 7, in Morris, during which public testimony
will be gathered on the two alternatives and the widening of Route 47
from Caton Road to I-80. The public comment period will last until Jan.
16, 2007. Shortly after that date, IDOT will decide which alternative
it prefers.
Another period
of public comment will follow, with final decision to take place before
the end of 2007, explained Powell. He said that if everything falls
into place, construction could begin as early as 2009.