Village hoping state can help fund Kreutzer Road project

Huntley – The Huntley Village Board is expected to ask the state for help in paying to straighten Kreutzer Road between Route 47 and Haligus Road.
Village staffers have prepared a resolution the board is expected to approve Thursday evening to apply for a grant from the Illinois Department of Transportation through its Traffic Enhancement Program.

The village has already okayed $300,000 for the first phase of engineering plans for the roadway. Kreutzer Road is now two lanes for about 6,500 feet east of the entrance to Walmart.

The road also takes a Le Mans-like S-curve jog to the right and then the left, crosses Union-Pacific railroad tracks and a drainage ditch before straightening. Danger exists in any car missing the narrowing of the pavement at the small bridge across the creek with a washed-out area immediately adjacent to the south side of the roadway.

The five-year plan for the village calls for this section of the roadway to be straightened, diminishing any safety concerns at the railway and creek crossings.

The entire roadway from Walmart to Haligus would be expanded into three lanes with a turning lane in the center. The village plan also calls for a multi-use, eight-foot-wide path to run north of the rebuilt roadway. providing access to the shopping area for pedestrians and bikers and connecting with a well-used pathway that runs on the east side of Haligus.

The village staff advised the board that federal funding is available for up to 50% of right-of-way and easement acquisition costs, and up to 80% for preliminary engineering, utility relocations, construction engineering, and construction costs. The maximum award for any project is $2 million.