Local government and park officials who hope to get federal aid for a McHenry County bike and pedestrian trail near U.S. Highway 14 are trying to reach an agreement on where the path will run.
Craig Williams, the project manager, has requested that representatives from Algonquin Township, Fox River Grove, Cary and Crystal Lake submit their concerns.
The group met recently to plot a trail that would begin at Illinois Highway 22 and U.S. 14 in Fox River Grove and connect to the Prairie Trail in Crystal Lake.
The goal of the meetings was to get officials talking so the trails will connect at the borders of those communities, said Jane Franz, chairwoman of the Algonquin Township Planning Commission.
“No one is going to get grant money for a trail that doesn’t connect to anything,” Franz said. “What the trails do within the boundaries of the individual communities is their business. We just want to make certain it flows.”
Williams, of the Edwards and Kelcey consulting firm of Chicago, said additional sidewalks and a bike path are needed along U.S. 14.
Sidewalks along the highway do not connect, he said, forcing pedestrians to walk along the edge of the street. Plans call for filling in the gaps, but the sidewalks are too narrow for bikes.
A bike path that winds close to U.S. 14 was also proposed.
While the idea has been discussed for years, the issue has been brought to the forefront in the wake of three deaths in the area over the last few years.
Nathan Oglesby was killed Aug. 7 near Jandus Road in Cary while riding his bike home to Fox River Grove from his job in Cary. Oglesby’s mother, Laura Debruyne-Soderberg, said her son had been riding on the median of U.S. 14 on a stretch where there was no sidewalk and the shoulder was narrow.
Last spring, Leon Tong’s body was found in the Fox River. He had been missing for three months. Friends who were with him the night he disappeared presumed he was trying to get across the river when he drowned.
And in September 1998, Ashley Kumm was killed on a railroad bridge over the Fox River when a train struck her. She used the tracks to get across the river.
Cary Trustee Linda Stelle, who attended the recent meeting, said that in all three cases, the youths were trying to travel through the corridor using what they thought were their best options given the lack of sidewalks and trails in the area.
“There is an immediate need to get some kind of sidewalk in place near Route 14,” Stelle said. “We have to push to get the grant submitted, because I can’t see us waiting another year for this while people continue to die.”
Officials are expected to have a cost estimate for the project shortly.
Algonquin Township Supervisor Patricia Floeter said she expected to see cost information at any time.
“We’re working under a very tight deadline,” she said.The earliest deadline for grants is March 1, when applications are due for the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program. Grants are typically 20 percent of a project’s cost.
Officials are uncertain whether the application for the project will be ready by then. Crystal Lake City Manager Joe Misurelli said his department has not had time to review the report and he was not going to rush to put in an application.
“I’ve had some experience with CMAQ grants, and one thing I know is that you have to have all of your information up front,” Misurelli said. “I think there is still a lot of work to be done here.”
Cary Mayor Don Huffer said his board adopted a resolution supporting the township’s effort. The board will have to decide what kind of money it can put toward the improvements, he said.
Art Osten, Fox River Grove village administrator, said his community’s part of the plan still will require trustees’ approval.
Floeter said that although the CMAQ program is a logical one to apply to, it will not kill the project if the application is not ready in time. Applications can be made to other state and federal programs aimed at improving traffic or air quality, she said.
The most expensive portion of the project is expected to be the construction of a bike bridge across the Fox River. The cost would be shared by Cary and Fox River Grove.
