2010 will be big year for Kane County's Stearns Road

The year 2010 should be a good year for Kane County commuters.

It will definitely be a better year for the county's transportation director.

Construction on the Stearns Road Bridge will end about this time next year, officials say, giving drivers a new route across the Fox River.

County transportation officials Friday closed the books on 2009 with the Stearns Road Bridge 30 percent completed. The project was the highlight of what Bill Wyatt, chairman of the county board's Transportation Committee, described as the county's "most aggressive program year ever."

The county set the list of transportation projects for 2009 before knowing the full ramifications of the economic slump, which ultimately led the county to shelve about $6.5 million in projects.

But Wyatt said that didn't stop the county from completing an array of road improvements, bridge repairs and traffic signal upgrades.

"We've done a really good job of being aggressive and maintaining our focus on infrastructure," he said. "And next year is going to be a good year, too."

Priority projects should not suffer from any funding delays in 2010, as the county borrowed all the money needed to get those projects rolling. The county will repay the loans with $40 million in sales tax revenues over the next five years.

Included on the 2010 list is the Interstate 90/Route 47 interchange in Huntley, an area some describe as the worst bottleneck in the county.

Kane County Transportation Director Carl Schoedel will also see a better year in 2010. The Transportation Committee voted Friday to give Schoedel a raise in a quirky move that will actually result in the county saving money.

Schoedel's salary will increase about $1,200 to a total of $119,035.

The raise comes as part of an agreement to participate in the Illinois Department of Transportation's County Engineer's Salary Program.

The program sets a target salary for county engineers throughout the state. If Schoedel's salary is within 95 percent of the target, the state pays half of it with Federal Surface Transportation Program Funds.

Wyatt said Kane County had to increase Schoedel's salary or lose the federal funds.