From yesterday's News-Gazette:
Purchase of the Lo property means that, out of 19 properties, only one 7-acre piece would remain to be acquired. Schmidt said the local governments are likely going to have to use their "quick-take" eminent domain authority to obtain that property, which he said is owned by a defunct land trust. Under quick take, the city gets immediate control of the property while a purchase price is litigated.
The next phase of the Curtis Road project calls for building a four- and five-lane road for 1 1/2 miles from Wynstone Drive in Champaign to Wesley Avenue in Savoy. It will cost $12.1 million. Of that amount, $5.7 million will be federal funding, with the county paying $3.7 million and Champaign and Savoy paying $1.6 million each.
Discuss.
When the road is complete, gas will be $7/gallon.
We will not be able to afford to drive on the new road
Indeed, this probably will be the case. I mentioned several weeks ago when the Champaign City Council approved the funding for all of the road improvements that residents of that city ought to have been "pounding the desk" demanding that this funding be used to improve mass transit, bike pathways and connectivity throughout the community, and any other alternative means of transportations. For Champaign to be spending these funds at a time of rising gas prices shows complete lack of fore thought and creative planning.
Pattsi Petrie
Pattsi, The City of Champaign could care less about any of the older parts of town. Why is there still oil and chip streets in Champaign??? All they can do is give it away to the developers to build cheap 4" concrete streets that fall apart in 10 years then leave "Joe Taxpayer " holding the bag. Go out where the Mayor lives on W. Daniel St. nothing done to those streets since the late 80's, or the wonderfull Garden Hills area, what a mess that whole area is drug dealers and junk cars everywhere! The City was going to clean that ghetto up but then June Mank died and that was the end of the story. Cherry Hills will be that way in a few years and Holiday Park and Ridgewood are close to being that way now.
Southwood is starting to turn, too, and Cherry Hills will be a ghetto probably in about 30 years.
Curious to see what Garden Hills and Dobbins down will look like then. Will they be redeveloped to improve drainage and add sidewalks, or will they both still flood?
Hopefully the city will continue with this project so they do not end up with a stupid two lane "neck down" like west Springfield.
As for improvements to mass transit, the MTD has plenty of funding for improvements but choses instead to save it. Yes, Champaign needs bike paths but unless the elected officials start riding a bike that is not going to happen. As for connectivity, Champaign is one of the best in Central Illinois for streets, however, their sidewalks could use some improvements.
Streets in Champaign are average condition for a city its size, however, recent and past annexations of poorer subdivisions have not seen road improvements. Annexation of the newer subdivisions like Cherry Hills and those west of I-57 have been real "money makers" for city since their streets are newer, requiring little or no repair. The question to ask your elected is, "Where is that increased tax revenue being spent?" "Is it covering the legal costs of joining the CU MTD against the new Champaign SW MTD?" "Is it being given to their sister organization, the City of Champaign Township?" or "Is it being use for the Curtis Road Improvement Project?"