Village: Keep Conventional Intersection at Randall, Algonquin Roads

Lake in the Hills Village Board trustees are expected to pass a resolution tonight urging the McHenry County Board to make improvements to a conventional intersection at Algonquin and Randall Roads. 

This goes against the plan proposed by county staff for a continuous-flow intersection, or CFI, for the intersection. Staff and board members with the village of Lake in the Hills fear the CFI could drive motorists away from Randall Road businesses in LITH. 

Officials with the McHenry County Division of Transportation have also voiced support for a CFI intersection. The Division of Transportation will hold a public hearing from 4 to 7 p.m. on Jan. 24 at H.D. Jacobs High School in Algonquin to allow residents to learn more about the proposed Randall Road improvement plan. 

 The CFI would separate southbound traffic on Randall turning eastbound onto Algonquin, while northbound traffic on Randall turning westbound onto Algonquin would be separated. 

Village Board Members Sounds Off on CFI During Tuesday Meeting

Village Board Trustee Paul Mulcahy said he fears the complicated intersection would steer residents away from LITH businesses on Randall Road. 

“The county wants to underplay driver confusion,” Mulcahy said at Tuesday night’s Committee of the Whole meeting. “People driving through this intersection will not catch on. This will cripple business in town, if not kill it altogether.”

Village Board President Ed Plaza echoed Mulcahy's sentiments. 

“If this plan were to go through, the east side of Randall Road would be a ghost town,” he said. 

Plaza added that car-count projections for Randall Road are skewed because the county does not take into consideration the dip in the economy — there is less growth than projected and fewer vehicles on the road.

Sagona: Conventional Intersection Preferred Over CFI

Gerald Sagona, village administrator for LITH, said a improvements to the conventional intersection at Randall and Algonquin roads would take up to 17.5 acres compared to the 19.5 acres a the CFI would take up. He said that the CFI would require one additional lane plus space for barrier curbs. 

Sagona said total project costs for a conventional intersection would be $59.4 million, about $20 million less than a CFI.

Paula Yenson, a county board member and former village board trustee in LITH, was at the meeting to hear concerns raised by village staff and board members. 

“I’m here to listen,” she said. “I’m going to be an advocate for the village at the county. I’m going to tell the county how the village feels about the issue.”