Will one-mile stretch of Meacham Road be widened, or just repaved?
Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg officials want the state to hold off on resurfacing a milelong stretch of Meacham Road in lieu of a full-scale reconstruction and widening.
But they may not be willing to pay for long-term maintenance of the road, as the state would require.
Talk of widening Meacham from Algonquin Road in Schaumburg to Emerson Avenue in Rolling Meadows has gone on since at least 2014 - pushed mostly by Schaumburg officials. They've argued for the economic benefits an extra lane could provide.
And in April, they got an assist when four aldermen new to the Rolling Meadows City Council said they were open to a reconstructed three-lane road. But it came with the caveat that the city wouldn't have to maintain its portion of the road to the tune of $375,000 over a nearly two-decade life cycle, and resurfacing would cost $1 million.
Officials at the Illinois Department of Transportation over the years have gone back and forth about whether they'd agree to such a deal. The latest word from the state, however, is that a jurisdictional transfer has to be part of the equation, especially for major roadwork to be performed on an unnumbered state route like Meacham.
So the state earlier this year publicly advertised a resurfacing project for the existing two-lane road, expected to cost $750,000. That, in turn, prompted a conference call among officials in Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg and Palatine, along with state Sen. Ann Gillespie, in an effort to persuade IDOT to delay its project.
Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg staff members continue to talk about issues related to a potential full-scale reconstruction, including roadway maintenance limits, who would have jurisdiction of the bridge that goes over Salt Creek, and who would maintain it.
Who would be responsible for the road remains a major sticking point.
"I'm still completely against taking it over," Rolling Meadows Alderman Mike Cannon said during a city council meeting last week. "If the state wants to do what they want to do, my attitude would be let them do what they want to do. But I don't want to take possession of that. We don't have the financial resources to handle that road going forward."
With or without a jurisdictional transfer, Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg would each be on the hook for at least $500,000 to rebuild the road, including the addition of a middle turn lane, and installing new storm sewers and curbs and gutters. The original cost estimate for the work was $7 million, with federal and state funds picking up most of the cost.