Illiana Expressway plan all over the map
By Chelsea Schneider Kirk cschneider@post-trib.com December 3, 2011 11:22PM
Updated: January 5, 2012 8:16AM
Blank maps were passed out to the Cedar Lake Town Council.
The directive from Town Council President Bob Carnahan: Draw where you envision the Illiana Expressway.
Some drew it north of Cedar Lake. The rest drew the long-planned route connecting Indiana to Illinois south of Lake Dalecarlia. One council member refused to do the exercise.
“I told everybody this proposal dates back to 1909, and it was supposed to alleviate congestion on the Borman,” Carnahan said. “It’s just too bad someone didn’t bite the bullet and do it a long time ago.”
Northwest Indiana leaders are reviewing eight proposed routes for the long-planned Illiana Expressway, aiming to ensure their community’s interests are protected.
The eight routes span Interstate 65 to Interstate 55. With six starting points in Indiana, the potential routes wind their way through the study area to three end points in Illinois.
On the Indiana side, the northernmost route is south of U.S. 30 in Merrillville, and the southernmost is south of Lowell and Indiana 2. The majority of the routes run through unincorporated Lake County, skirting the edges of Lowell and Cedar Lake.
Carnahan drew his version of the Illiana Expressway south of Lake Dalecarlia.
“I heard it’s more environmentally friendly to go north, and it’s a shorter route. I think you displace more residents that way,” Carnahan said.
Utility lines, necessary for development, run south of Lake Dalecarlia, so Carnahan maintains it’s a more logical placement.
Carnahan has joined a host of stakeholders for Illiana Corridor planning meetings. Depending on the final route, his town along with Merrillville, St. John or Lowell could see the most impact.
Merrillville Town Council President Tom Goralczyk figures the Illiana will go around Lowell or near the county line of Lake and Newton. He feels the route will alleviate traffic from U.S. 30 when Interstate 80/94 is backed up.
“I don’t think it’s going to hurt any of the business that’s going to be on (U.S. 30),” Goralczyk said. “We still have people coming from Dyer, Schererville and everyone going to the mall.”
Lowell most likely will see more benefits from the Illiana if the route goes south of the town, Lowell Redevelopment Commission President Doug Niksch said. He believes planners will rely on what route most logically addresses traffic projections.
“That would give Lowell a very nice road and truck corridor because it would have I-65, the Illiana and (U.S.) 41,” Niksch said.
Each route carries its own benefits, Cedar Lake Town Manager Ian Nicolini said.
If the aim is to provide for the most traffic to be diverted onto the Illiana, a northern route makes sense, Nicolini said. If the aim is to minimize property acquisition, Nicolini feels a route to the south makes more sense.
A U.S. 41 interchange also is likely off the Illiana, which depending on the location could spur commercial development in Cedar Lake.
“It’s pretty complicated when you consider all the stakeholders and all the potential impact any routes are going to take,” Nicolini said.
The Indiana and Illinois departments of transportation are conducting the study. Currently, planners are working on the first tier of studying the environmental impact of the project which should be complete within two years.
The next public meetings are scheduled for 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 13 at Crown Point High School and 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Matteson Hotel and Conference Center in Matteson, Ill.
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