Title
Resolution endorsing the Unified Vision Document for the Central Lake Thruway, as adopted by the Governance Board for the Illinois Rte 120 Corridor Planning Council on October 14, 2009, and affirming the intent of Lake County to make relevant future governmental decisions relative to the Illinois 120 Corridor that are consistent with the endorsed Unified Vision Document for the Central Lake Thruway.
Staff Summary
• Central Lake Thruway: Endorse Unified Vision
• The 2005 Lake County Transportation Summit identified IL Rte 120 as the east-west regional highway corridor that should be improved to reduce regional congestion.
• The IL Rte 120 Corridor Planning Council (CPC) was formed in January 2006 by 11 municipalities and Lake County to make policy decisions during a Feasibility Study.
• The LCDOT managed a consultant hired to conduct the technical Feasibility Study with funding from the member entities and IDOT (approximately $1 million total).
• The collaborative-driven process was targeted to balance tradeoffs involved in financing, economic development, transportation congestion relief, environmental and public input goals for the Character of the Road and Placement of the Road.
• The completion of the technical Feasibility Study, which can lead into a federally eligible Phase I Preliminary Engineering study, determined what is locally preferred for the IL 120 Corridor in a Unified Vision of the Central Lake Thruway (a map document).
• The financing of the Central Lake Thruway will be studied further in Phase I (the Phase I Study will in fact reconsider all aspects of the Feasibility Study).
• The Governance Board of the CPC endorsed the Unified Vision and each member is now asking their member entities to adopt a Resolution of Endorsement of the Unified Vision for the Central Lake Thruway.
• This resolution of endorsement of the Unified Vision includes the intent that the County Board, in order to effectuate the Unified Vision, to make future governmental decisions that are consistent with the Unified Vision Document.
• This resolution supports the immediate need for IDOT to start to conduct a federally eligible Phase I Preliminary Engineering Study.
Body
WHEREAS, in September of 2005, the Lake County Transportation Summit chose to recommend the of Illinois Rte 120 east-west corridor thru central Lake County be pursued as the regional community by-pass highway project to address traffic congestion in the county; and
WHEREAS, Lake County and the municipalities of Grayslake, Gurnee, Hainesville, Lakemoor, Libertyville, Mundelein, Round Lake, Round Lake Park, Volo, Wauconda and Waukegan came together in January 11, 2006, to form the Illinois Rte 120 Corridor Planning Council (IL 120 CPC); and
WHEREAS, the purpose of the IL 120 CPC was to develop, through the planning process of conducting a feasibility study, a consensus-driven unified vision for what is technically and politically feasible for the Illinois 120 Corridor and is the locally preferred plan for the future of the corridor; and
WHEREAS, a transportation project feasibility study, in its simplest form, determines if the project, or what portion of it, is worth looking at in greater detail; and
WHEREAS, The Corridor Planning Council format of the IL 120 CPC was structured to take into account financing, economic development, transportation, land use, environmental and public input policy issues, and balance the tradeoffs among the inherent conflicting nature of achieving policy goals for those issues, if individually addressed, by making collaborative decisions that are targeted to achieve the following goals:
a) Determine Character of the Road
b) Determine Road Placement
c) Develop Financing Plans
WHEREAS, the completed Feasibility Study has determined the locally preferred plan for the first two of the above said goals and has been structured to pave the way for a federally eligible Phase 1 Preliminary Engineering Study (The Governance Board is fully aware that a federally eligible Phase 1 Preliminary Engineering Study will reconsider all aspects of the Feasibility Study); and
WHEREAS, the governing structure of the IL 120 CPC is a 16 member Governance Board of member entities and the By-Laws of the Governance Board provide for the final endorsement of the Feasibility Study to be decided by at least 60% of the membership (10 members) of the Governance Board; nevertheless, the Feasibility Study is non-binding on member municipalities and Lake County, and
WHEREAS, Task Forces were formed, associated with land use, environmental, technical and public involvement, to advise the Governance Board, and
WHEREAS, with the aid of an Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) grant, technical staff assistance from IDOT, the Lake County Division of Transportation and its consultant and under the policy direction of the Governance Board, a Unified Vision Document has been prepared for the Illinois Rte 120 Corridor, now entitled as the Central Lake Thruway; and
WHEREAS, the Governance Board, by at least the required 60% of members, endorsed the Unified Vision Document for the Central Lake Thruway on October 14, 2009, a copy of which is attached hereto, and recommended to each member entity to act to adopt a formal resolution of endorsement, and
WHEREAS, the Governance Board, to effectuate the Unified Vision for the Central Lake Thruway, recommended to each member entity to include in their formal resolution of endorsement their intent to make future governmental decision that are consistent with the endorsed Unified Vision Document.
NOW BE IT RESOLVED, that the County Board of Lake County hereby endorses the Unified Vision Document for the Central Lake Thruway, as endorsed by the Governance Board for the Illinois 120 Corridor Planning Council on October 14, 2009.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the County Board of Lake County in order to effectuate the said Unified Vision for the Central Lake Thruway, hereby states their intent to make future governmental decision that are consistent with the endorsed Unified Vision Document.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the County Board of Lake County supports the immediate need for a federally eligible Phase 1 Preliminary Engineering Study to be initiated by the Illinois Department of Transportation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Clerk of Lake County is hereby directed to send a certified copy of this resolution to the County Engineer of Lake County.
Dated at Waukegan, Illinois, on this 10th day of November A.D., 2009