Northfield officials stunned by state's Willow Road widening plan

Jeff Schoenberg who stopped the funding of the three lane plan.Otherwise the road would already be widened to three lanes. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent on that engineering to make the plan viable for Northfield.
Schoenberg insisted we have meetings with Winnetka to plan the road over again by stopping the money for fixing the road. He knows what he as done. I have attended the workshops and meetings. The lakota design process has taken countless hours of our official's time and our citizen's time. It smells like he has wasted the time and money of our citizens to provide cover for his Chicago style "done deal" he worked out with developers and the village of Glenview.

Hurrah for Jess Schoenberg!

The time for this move is past due. The needs of the region trump those of a few rich homeowners who don't want the road.

To my fellow residents in the suburbs this is what happens when you elect Democrats that do not represent our views or needs. Jeff Schoenberg and his buddy, Governor Rod Blagojevich represent Chicago style Democratic politics at their best. Thanks for the votes suckers.

I think if done right, the residents of Northfield will wonder why this improvement took so long. The underpass is the key here - and surely its construction will be a headache. But the end result should improve the conditions in the village, not diminish them.

Finally someone shows leadership over this overdue project. Northfield has stalled this for years and it is great to see the deadlock finally broken. Compare the hours people have spent on the Lakota portion to the tens of thousands of hours wasted in bottleneck traffic. Schoenberg deserves much credit here.

Danaidh wrote:

Hurrah for Jess Schoenberg!
The time for this move is past due. The needs of the region trump those of a few rich homeowners who don't want the road.

You just proved my point. Citizens in Chicago are comfortable with democrat politicians making decisions for them. Many in Chicago do not care about the "done deal" or the "fix" as long as their garbage is picked up. In the suburbs we are still like to help run our own municipal government and we have honest people like John Birkenbine trying to do so.
The home owners have a stake in their community and should have the most say. We pay for regional items for Chicago and Cook County all of the time. Northfield already agreed to widen this road in 1999 and paid for the engineering. All of that money and time has been wasted. Schoenberg stopped it with his clout and said it had to be even wider than we planned it. Demonizing the "rich" is a favorite democrat tactic. It is used to try to justify taking our money and spending it their way.

Depot Jim wrote:

To my fellow residents in the suburbs this is what happens when you elect Democrats that do not represent our views or needs. Jeff Schoenberg and his buddy, Governor Rod Blagojevich represent Chicago style Democratic politics at their best. Thanks for the votes suckers.

This is so true. Democrat politics are not "democratic".

The money should go towards fixing US Route 45 from Frankfort to Manteno. That stretch of road is so deplorable it looks like one in a third world country.

It's high time that they widened Willow Rd in Northfield. There is tons of space on either side of the road and I have always been irritated by the amount of time it takes to get to I-94 once you get past Sunset Ridge.

Enough pampering these filthy rich, NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) Northfielder's who very typically only care about the aesthetic vale of their own houses rather than the pain faced by their fellow citizens.

I just got off of the stretch of road referenced in this piece and I can tell you two things; first, yes, traffic does...slow down in Northfield on Willow, but, it's residential area with a school, not retail space. So, Glenview wants easier consumer access to their retail, though I don't like in Crook County, I'd say: so what? Northfield is a small community sandwiched between the Eden's and Glenview. The making of a residential two lane street into a thoroughfare linking a highway and a HUGE development in Glenview {the old naval air station} shouldn't trample the rights of the people of Northfield. But, that's just my opinion. After all, I'm not a political hack who comes to quack. If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, has feathers and is best served roasted with orange sauce, it's likely a duck, aka: a quack hack / the governor and his cronies.

OK...Let me see if I understand? They want to spend ANOTHER $4 million of taxpayers $$... AND take four more years to do an "engineering study"...what exactly do they need to study??

Wouldn't it make more sense to use that $$ for purchasing property, design & ACTUAL construction costs for a project that obviously has been needed for some time?

Call me stupid, but it sounds like another way for the state to be handing out patronage money to their friends at our expense, while we sit in a huge bottleneck trying to get from place to place.

Northbrook Resident wrote:

It's high time that they widened Willow Rd in Northfield. There is tons of space on either side of the road and I have always been irritated by the amount of time it takes to get to I-94 once you get past Sunset Ridge.
Enough pampering these filthy rich, NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) Northfielder's who very typically only care about the aesthetic vale of their own houses rather than the pain faced by their fellow citizens.

To a fellow Northbrook resident. Do not get too comfortable and happy. The State, let by those crooked Chicago politicians, have some plans for Northbrook that I do not think you will like. In the past they have talked about making Willow Road a high level highway just like west of I 294. I guess this will create more jobs for Blagojevich and Stroger's relatives and friends.

TedJ wrote:

Finally someone shows leadership over this overdue project. Northfield has stalled this for years and it is great to see the deadlock finally broken. Compare the hours people have spent on the Lakota portion to the tens of thousands of hours wasted in bottleneck traffic. Schoenberg deserves much credit here.

How exactly has Northfield stalled the widening of Willow Road? Northfield & IDOT agreed to widen the road back in 1999. It would have been completed already if not for the Senator.

It was Senator Schoenberg & his leadership, who has been the roadblock to this project. He pulled the funding for it in 2005 when he jumped into bed with Glenview and Northbrook and their over development. This is all about bringing in additionsl revenues for their new malls.

If Schoenberg ever listened to the residents of Northfield and/or had waited for the Lakota study completed before jumping the gun, then this project would have been complete quickly everyone's satisfaction.

Northbrook Resident wrote:

It's high time that they widened Willow Rd in Northfield. There is tons of space on either side of the road and I have always been irritated by the amount of time it takes to get to I-94 once you get past Sunset Ridge.
Enough pampering these filthy rich, NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) Northfielder's who very typically only care about the aesthetic vale of their own houses rather than the pain faced by their fellow citizens.

Nimby? Why doesn't IDOT install a tollway exit at Dundee Road and help alleviate traffic congestion on Willow Road.

All of our neighbors including Northbrook have never been concerned with safety first, as IDOT is mandated to ensure. Why should Northfield bear the brunt for Glenview & Northbrook's over development?

Ray wrote:

OK...Let me see if I understand? They want to spend ANOTHER $4 million of taxpayers $$... AND take four more years to do an "engineering study"...what exactly do they need to study??
Wouldn't it make more sense to use that $$ for purchasing property, design & ACTUAL construction costs for a project that obviously has been needed for some time?
Call me stupid, but it sounds like another way for the state to be handing out patronage money to their friends at our expense, while we sit in a huge bottleneck trying to get from place to place.

The State and Northfield already did all the engineering, environmental and safety impact studies after we had a deal back in 1999. Work should already be completed on the updated road. But Senator Schoenberg, who has been linked with Glenview the whole time, threw out everything mandating that all the work must be redone. Talk about a waste!! Blame both Schoenberg & Glenview for this mess!

Northbrook Resident wrote:

It's high time that they widened Willow Rd in Northfield. There is tons of space on either side of the road and I have always been irritated by the amount of time it takes to get to I-94 once you get past Sunset Ridge.
Enough pampering these filthy rich, NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) Northfielder's who very typically only care about the aesthetic vale of their own houses rather than the pain faced by their fellow citizens.

You will save 90 seconds by speeding through that one mile. The people who live here will lose their sense of community. Sorry you are "annoyed". I grew up in a town where the road was widened to four lanes across from my grade school. When I was in fifth grade. Two of my classmates were killed by cars. We planted maple trees in their memory. When I go home I say a prayer for them. It was 43 years ago that they died. Cars travel pretty fast on that road.

If safety is truly a concern, provide for a fence that separates people from traffic and provide pedestrian bridges where necessary.

Twenty years ago this bottleneck was an inconvenience, today its a horror. The 4 lane expansion is a must.

Just build it for the good of the area, and it is sorely needed. The bottleneck has been a pain in the A for decades and it is only going to get worse.

Jane wrote:

<quoted text>
You will save 90 seconds by speeding through that one mile. The people who live here will lose their sense of community. Sorry you are "annoyed". I grew up in a town where the road was widened to four lanes across from my grade school. When I was in fifth grade. Two of my classmates were killed by cars. We planted maple trees in their memory. When I go home I say a prayer for them. It was 43 years ago that they died. Cars travel pretty fast on that road.

Jane, unfortunately there are some people out there that just don't care. The State pulled a fast one on the Willow Road project. I am curious what the speed limit will be on the new road. With the average driver 35 MPH means 45 MPH plus. And 45 MPH will mean 55 MPH plus. The State and Schoenberg did not take that into consideration. All the politicians care about is the construction project and how much money they will make out of it.