Quentin Road widening gets boost from neighbors, opposition persists

Palatine's pesky traffic bottleneck could be closer to getting relief.

Despite the prospect of living alongside a major arterial roadway, neighbors have provided a boost to the proposed widening of Quentin Road.

Just six of 112 households in the adjacent Dunhaven Woods subdivision declined to sign a petition backing the project, which would expand Quentin from Dundee to Lake-Cook roads from two to at least four lanes.

"It won't look as rural or as pretty, but it'll be safer," said petition organizer Jo Anne Setze. "We've been living in a dangerous state for many years."

Residents say it's a game of chance to try to turn left out of Dunhaven Woods. Breaks in traffic are infrequent, and an incline impedes drivers from seeing cars barreling down a hill at 45 mph. A wider road would thin the logjam of cars and a turn lane will provide a safety buffer, proponents say.

Clara Pan is among those who didn't sign the petition. Like others, she won't back the project without guarantees of a traffic light at the neighborhood entrance.

"It's already near impossible to cross two lanes now," she said. "How much worse will it be with four?"

A traffic signal, though unlikely, was included in the petition as criteria for Cook County to consider in its proposal, as Quentin is a county road. Other requests include a lower speed limit and evergreen trees to provide a barrier.

Last month, Palatine officials agreed to fund half the costs of installing sidewalks along Quentin.

The project still faces opposition from Friends of the Forest Preserve. The stretch of road passes through the county's oldest forest preserve, Deer Grove, and the environmental group cites harm to plant life and even the migration patterns of a turtle species.

Talk of widening Quentin dates back more than a decade. Palatine passed resolutions of support in 1996 and 2007. Last June, the Cook County Forest Preserve board voted to accept a federal report that cleared the way for federal funds to study and plan for the widening. The county highway department is preparing to present its draft at a public hearing in the spring.

Cook County Commissioner Gregg Goslin said the highway department has "bent over backward" to accommodate environmental concerns, such as realigning road to avoid clusters of viable trees.

"In terms of the environment, this will be a better plan than it was when it started," Goslin said.