Many thanks due for Longmeadow Pkwy.

The village of Algonquin is extremely happy to see the news of the funding of Longmeadow Parkway. Since Algonquin named Longmeadow Parkway some 20 years ago and subsequently set aside land and paved phase one, we have had a vision to see this as a new path across the Fox River to support the businesses and residents of northern Kane County.

I would like to congratulate and thank Chairman Chris Lauzen and the Kane County Board for continuing this vision, and there are others who have had a major part in making this a reality. Karen McConnaughay has driven this for over a decade, first as county board chairman and now as state senator. The nine other municipalities surrounding Longmeadow Parkway have been very supportive, and State Rep. Mike Tryon has been a great help in Springfield.

I would also like to thank my friend Larry Keller, former mayor of West Dundee, who stuck with the vision over the years. Finally, I would like to express my thanks to Governor Quinn, Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann Schneider, and Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke, Chairman of the Kane/Kendall Council of Mayors for their leadership.

This will be a major infrastructure improvement that will not only help relieve congestion but will be a business builder in the Carpentersville, Algonquin and Huntley industrial parks. In Algonquin, this project will benefit 700-plus acres in the Algonquin Corporate campus, generating potentially $500 million of business sales resulting in sales tax revenue to help schools and other taxing bodies, creating thousands of construction and 12,800 permanent jobs, and reducing travel times for those and other commuters in the region.

John C. Schmitt

Village president

Algonquin