Late spring/early summer finish projected for major Rollins Gateway road project
There still is a way to go, but the long-anticipated Rollins Gateway road improvement in Round Lake Beach has rounded the corner as work buttons up for the winter.
New pavement on the west side of Route 83 recently opened to traffic and the intersection with Rollins has been restored, completing the last major work of this construction season.
"It looks good. Traffic seems to be flowing, and it's nice not to get stuck by a train," said Village Administrator Dave Kilbane.
The chief improvement for motorists has been the construction of a railroad underpass for the new Rollins Road as it approached and goes through the intersection of Route 83. As many as 50 commuter and freight trains per day crossed Rollins at grade just west of Route 83, creating frustrating backups.
The $69 million road project has been described as the most expensive and complicated undertaken by the Lake County division of transportation. Utility relocation began in 2012, with roadwork beginning in August 2013. The project now is about 70 percent complete.
"We don't expect there to be too much work over the winter," Mark Molnar, resident engineer for Alfred Benesch & Co., the firm overseeing the work for the county reported in a recent update.
As weather permits, the contractor will place concrete faces and caps on the retaining walls west of Route 83. Also, the temporary bridge that had been used for Route 83 over Rollins will be removed and the embankment will be cut down to bring the grade in line with the new pavement on Route 83.
"Once weather cooperates in the spring, we'll resume work on building the eastern half" of Route 83, Molnar said. Another retaining wall will be built at the southeast corner of the intersection. The last portion of Hainesville Road and miscellaneous portions of Rollins will be built then, he added.
Once the pavement is done, the medians, traffic signals and final landscaping will be finished. If the weather cooperates, the entire project is scheduled to be completed by late spring or early summer, according to Molnar.
Progress on the disruptive project has been welcomed by drivers and is a boost for the village.
"Hopefully, we'll see some projects that have been waiting for the road," Kilbane said. Among them is the redevelopment of the aging, fenced off Mallard Creek shopping area on the north side of Rollins east and west of Hainesville Road, which will be torn down for a Meijer superstore, which has been approved by village officials.
Visit rollinsroadgateway.com for more information on the project.