Growth
This was posted on my campaign web blog and I feel it’s still relevent…
Last summer attended a meeting about improving Route 176 from Route 31 to the Fox River. I have advocated for years the concept of true regional planning. What one community does affects their neighbor. If Prairie Grove builds 2500 homes those cars will come…through Crystal Lake, Island Lake, McHenry and Lakemoor. Each of these communities will pay the cost of that extra traffic through accelerated wear and tear of their infrastructure. We will see an increase in auto traffic that will require extra safe guards to protect our children while crossing the street. Prairie Grove’s neighbors shoulder the costs while Prairie Grove reaps the benefits from all those rooftops paying property taxes.
What is needed is a Route 176 Corridor Group similar to the Route 120 planning council. Ten communities along Route 120 are working in unison to help create a corridor so that all who live along it will benefit. The communities along Route 176 need to come together to do the same type of planning. One bottleneck, one little kink along this route will cause it to fail unless we work together. Businesses will not locate anywhere on Route 176 so long as it is difficult to move product to and from the area. McHenry County lessons it’s own chances to develop properly so long as it has inadequate roads in which to travel. And it will continue so long as we do not work together for the common good.
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