FRANKFORT
Road repairs linger for part of U.S. 30
Roadwork will continue to plague traffic on U.S. Highway 30 in Frankfort this summer, a village official said recently.
Bright orange signs and cones signifying road repairs — and traffic delays — will be seen at Locust Street and 80th Avenue until the end of summer, Village Administrator Jerry Ducay said.
The biggest improvement project is at the Wolf Road intersection, which probably won’t be completed until the fall of 2010, Ducay said. Extra lanes are being added to enlarge the Wolf intersection to the size of the intersection at U.S. 30 and La Grange Road, he said.
Meanwhile, a Cook County plan to redo Harlem Avenue near Sauk Trail and Laraway Road was expected to start this summer but has been pushed back. Trustee Kevin Egan, a regular traveler on that street, said the pavement is in bad shape and needs some temporary repairs.
— Pat Harper
JOLIET
Water, sewer fees likely will rise
Water and sewer fees could be on the rise soon for Joliet residents.
In the past, city officials suggested the fees could increase as much as 30 percent.
City Manager Tom Thanas said the increase is necessary, noting that both gambling revenue and water and sewer tap-on fees from new construction have declined. The city had used both sources to subsidize the water and sewer fund.
Thanas recently told City Council members he wants the new fees to take effect Oct. 1.
— Alicia Fabbre
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OAK LAWN
High school creates facility wish list
Oak Lawn Community High School officials would like to see a new auditorium, improved traffic flow and parking and revamped sports fields in coming years.
Although the school board for district 229 has yet to discuss how much renovations could cost or where the money will come from, the board has come up with more than a dozen improvements needed for both the inside of the more than 50-year-old building and surrounding property. Other improvements are needed for the bathrooms, tennis court, food labs, gym bleacher and sports concession.
The school, which has won many state awards for its performing arts programs, has no real theater, only a converted lecture hall and a gym that are used for plays and musicals.
— Janice Neumann
PLAINFIELD
Gift of land clears way for new bridge
Plainfield trustees recently cleared the way for a new bridge on Renwick Road.
The Village Board agreed to give Plainfield Township officials a strip of village-owned land necessary to build a bridge that would replace a one-lane bridge on Renwick, west of Illinois Highway 59.
The agreement ends a years-long discussion over the project and debate over the needed land. In the past, village trustees have opposed the transfer, saying they wanted a grade-separated bridge that would allow motorists to avoid a nearby railroad crossing.
The bridge, which is a township project, is not expected to be completed until late 2012, Collins said.
— Alicia Fabbre
TINLEY PARK
Fire service looks at improvements
Even with only three of its four fire stations fully staffed, Tinley Park is providing protection equal to Park Ridge and Lake Bluff, according to the Insurance Services Office.
The insurance-industry rating office gives the three suburbs a grade of 3 on a scale of 1-10, just two points below a perfect 1.
But a Wilsonville, Ore., consulting firm is recommending that Tinley Park increase staffing at the fourth station to 24 hours a day to accommodate residential and business growth. The Emergency Services Consulting Inc. analysis acknowledges that the village would have to expand Fire Station 2, at 7825 W. 167th St., to accommodate additional people.
During a recent Public Safety Committee meeting, Trustee Brian Maher said expanding Station 2 would cost $300,000, although some of that money would be used to renovate Station 3 at 9191 W. 175th St.
Village Manager Scott Niehaus said the cost of expanding one station and renovating the other would significantly improve response efficiency.
— Dennis Sullivan