Dist. 300 to pay pay village $337,000 for road improvements

Carpentersville won't have to call the bill collector.

The Community Unit District 300 school board voted Monday to pay the village about $337,000 for improvements to Miller Road.

The ongoing project has rebuilt the road from Huntley Road to Shenandoah Drive and added a parking area next to Liberty Elementary School. It also will install a traffic signal at Huntley and Miller.

The parking lane was installed because of concerns that Liberty parents were causing traffic backups at Huntley and Miller.

Several years ago, District 300 officials pledged to pay for the portion of the work that benefits the elementary school.

But the improvements were delayed more than five years because Carpentersville had difficulty acquiring the land needed for the upgrades, village officials said.

The District 300 school board voted last year to spend no more than $300,000 on the project, and some board members objected to paying more than that amount, blaming the village for the delay.

"We felt that the village had dragged their feet, so we didn't want to be liable for all the inflationary costs," said board President Joe Stevens, who voted with Monica Clark against the spending in a 4-2 decision.

But Carpentersville officials said the higher cost reflects the fact the original estimate did not include the cost of the parking lane.

"The cost is higher, but it's a much greater scope of work," Village Engineer Scott Marquardt said. "The bulk of the recent cost increase is due to greater work that is being done at the request of the district."

Most of the work, including the parking lane, has been completed and should be ready when school starts Aug. 31, according to the village. The rest of the project, including the traffic light, is scheduled to be completed by November.

Pay: Project slated to be complete by November