Huntley board opens wallet for Rte. 47 widening

The village of Huntley sent a message to the Illinois Department of Transportation Thursday that the village is on board for the planned widening of Route 47.

At the request of IDOT, the Huntley village board directed Village Manager Carl Tomaso to send a letter of intent to IDOT indicating that the village will contribute an estimated $1.4 million to the widening project.

Village staff members, though, have estimated that Huntley's contribution could be as much as $2.5 million because of the cost of relocating utilities and other unknown expenses.

When the project is complete, Route 47 between Kreutzer and Reed roads will have two lanes north and south and a median.

The project will also replace the Route 47 bridge over the East Kishwaukee River and install a permanent traffic light at Kreutzer and Route 47.

The commitments outlined in the letter of intent will be formalized later in an intergovernmental agreement between IDOT and the village of Huntley. At that time, the exact details and costs of the project will be determined.

The priciest item Huntley has committed to is lighting Route 47 from Dean Street to Reed Road, at an estimated cost of $1.19 million.

The village also would pay more than $90,000 to cover half the cost of new sidewalks along the widened Route 47.

Additionally, Huntley would pay between 5 and 10 percent of the cost of upgrading traffic lights at Main Street and Algonquin Road and installing permanent lights at Kreutzer and Reed roads.

The village's total share of the traffic signal improvements would be an estimated $80,000.

Huntley would also have to pay almost $30,000, or 15 percent, of engineering costs for the new sidewalks, the traffic light improvements and other aspects of the project.