Stretch of Quentin Road in Palatine closing for a month

Palatine officials say an unexpected, roughly one-month closure of southbound Quentin Road for bridge repairs starting in mid-July is causing concern about traffic woes and other issues for the village's north end.

In a letter to the village last week, a Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways engineering consultant said southbound Quentin will be shut down July 16 through Aug. 10 between Lake-Cook and Dundee roads. That stretch of Quentin receives about 20,400 vehicle trips daily, according to the latest Illinois Department of Transportation statistics.

Palatine Village Manager Reid Ottesen said the notification about the bridge project over Baldwin Creek came unexpectedly. Quentin is mostly one lane in each direction between Dundee and Lake-Cook.

"My bottom line is that this is going to be terrible for our residents and our emergency response times," Ottesen said. "This is a road that the county has known needed reconstruction for at least the past 10 to 15 years and they have failed to move forward."

Cook County spokeswoman Becky Schlikerman the scope of work will include adding structural steel beams to the 100-year-old bridge.

"The bridge is safe today," Schlikerman said Tuesday, "and these repairs will ensure that the bridge will remain safe before the scheduled reconstruction of the roadway and bridge in the next few years."

Illinois Department of Transportation officials have been asked to approve an official detour submitted by Cook County. Traffic typically using southbound Quentin would be directed east on Lake-Cook, south on Rand Road to Hicks Road and then to westbound Dundee.

Palatine police Cmdr. William Nord said the closure will create additional traffic for already heavily traveled roadways.

"Palatine police would encourage motorists who will be traveling on the impacted roadways to take their time and plan accordingly," Nord said. "Delays can be expected, and the use of alternate routes are recommended."

Visitors to the popular Deer Grove Forest Preserve will need to use northbound Quentin to reach the main entrance on the street's west side.

Cook County has been considering a renovation of Quentin between Dundee and Lake-Cook, but that would not occur until 2021 at the earliest, according to documents submitted to the Northwest Council of Mayors Technical Committee. The committee has Northwest suburban mayors and village managers as members who identify and address local transportation improvements.

Under the tentative plan, Quentin would be reconstructed with potential widening, drainage improvements, a new Baldwin Creek bridge and a multiuse path connecting to the Deer Grove preserve. The county a hosted focus group with environmental concerns about the proposed project in January.