HUNTLEY – The economy may still be struggling to recover, but a lot of irons are in the fire in the Village of Huntley.
This year promises to be a very busy one as village, county, and state agencies plan for expansion of the I-90 tollway interchange at Route 47, extension of Kreutzer Road to Main Street, and a possible future pedestrian walkway over Route 47. Future possibilities include a Metra transit station, possible development near Regency Parkway, and extension of Reed Road westward to Coyne Station Road.
Rob Scardino, village engineer, gave an update on the tollway interchange work.
“Construction on this long-awaited and much-discussed project could begin as early as June, or later this summer,” Scardino said. “We’re in the final phase of engineering design, and the project went out for bids by contractors recently. Property is still being acquired, and scheduling the final stages of the project is being finalized.”
Access to the tollway from Route 47 will be kept open during the two years this project will go on, he said.
“The present plan calls for the work to begin this year on the northbound lanes on the bridge, with the southbound lanes remaining open, and then switching around later,” he said. “The existing ramps east of the bridge will be replaced, and then the new ones will be built west of the bridge.”
At least some of the pillars of the bridge will probably be replaced, Scardino added.
This is a multi-jurisdictional, $65-million project, Scardino said, with the Illinois Tollway Authority, McHenry County, Kane County, Huntley, and the Illinois Department of Transportation sharing the cost.
A pedestrian bridge over Route 47, also a much-discussed idea in recent years, is still in the conceptual stage, Scardino said.
“One of the locations being considered is at Mill Street near the Cosman Center of the Huntley Park District,” he said. “There is some feeling that we need to protect and expedite pedestrian movement to and from the Cosman Center and also to businesses on both sides of Route 47.”
Progress may be made this year regarding agreement on a location, he added.
The extension of Kreutzer Road from Princeton Drive near Walgreen’s on an L-shaped route to Main Street is in the advanced design stage, Scardino said.
“The earliest construction on this would be the spring of 2013. We are receiving $1.5 million toward this project from the McHenry County Council of Mayors, so we are required to work with IDOT to get approval for this,” Scardino said.
“The project requires construction of a bridge over the Kishwaukee River near the Lions Chase subdivision,” he added.
Related to this Kreutzer project is the future possibility of extending Regency Parkway north to Kreutzer.
“This could happen as a part of future development of the area behind the Heritage Woods assisted living facility,” Scardino said. “The village is in the preliminary stages of exploring the feasibility of this idea now.”
Another future possibility is the extension of Reed Road westward from the Talamore subdivision to Coyne Station Road, Scardino said. “The goal here is to complete conceptual design this year on this,” he added.
Finally, the possibility of a Metra transit station near Coyne Station and the Union Pacific freight line tracks remains in limbo.
“The economic downturn and the lack of transit-related development in this area has put that idea on the back burner,” Scardino said. “Neither Metra nor the village has focused on this lately.”
