Questions arise over Buffalo Grove road project

Buffalo Grove's village engineer raised concerns about polling residents regarding two less-than-ideal options the village must consider to qualify for federal funds for improvements to Brandywyn Lane and Thompson Boulevard.

At stake is some $5.7 million for a project that would cost the village about $7.6 million if it improved the roads on its own.

The roads, which are 34 feet wide, would need a minimum width of 36 feet. Two options are widening them to 36 feet and possibly removing one-third of the existing trees, or restricting parking to one side while maintaining the current width.

Last month, village board members recommended the village seek homeowners' input before making a choice.

Village Engineer Darren Monico told trustees during Monday's committee of the whole meeting that staff is concerned the village is not far enough along in the design to provide exact information about tree removal.

"We can guesstimate, but I think what's going to be most important to each individual resident is whether or not their tree is staying, and I can't answer that with 100-percent accuracy," Monico said.

Trustee Jeffrey Berman spoke strongly in favor of the public process and reminded village officials of efforts to promote citizen engagement.

"Informing residents about the project after a decision has been made to jettison one or the other alternative is, in my opinion, the antithesis of citizen engagement," Berman said.

He added he was confident the staff could "communicate the nature of the project and its implications to this relatively small group of affected residents, so we can obtain meaningful feedback from them."

Trustee Joanne Johnson, who could not attend the meeting, said in an email that with incomplete information about the trees, "the citizens would not have the necessary information to make a fully informed decision." She warned they could become frustrated at the lack of information or angry if the project turns out to be different from what they expected.

But Trustee Steven Trilling said the village can provide some information.

"The definitive part is that we can say, 'You have one of two options. Pick one of the two options. We'll give you all of the information we have on those two options. We'll tell you either: A, you're going to park on one side of the street, or B, you're going to lose a percentage of your trees,'" he said.

Village Manager Dane Bragg suggested staff try to firm up the estimate, then work with village communications people to see how to present it to residents so it can be discussed.