Key section of Quentin Road to close for nearly a month
A key section of southbound Quentin Road in Palatine is expected to be closed to traffic for about a month starting Monday to accommodate a bridge repair.
The approximately one-mile stretch will be shut down between Lake-Cook and Dundee roads so the Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways can fix the 100-year-old Baldwin Creek bridge, officials said. Projected to finish by Aug. 24, the work will include adding structural steel beams to the bridge, located near the entrance to Deer Grove West Forest Preserve.
Palatine Village Manager Reid Ottesen said he wishes the project started as scheduled July 16. Under the original timeline, the work would have been done before Palatine Township Elementary District 15 classes resume Aug. 15.
"To the extent it had to happen, the fact that it was now delayed and will overlap with the start of school and bus routes only brings further frustration to the village and our residents," Ottesen said.
Quentin is mostly one lane in each direction between Dundee and Lake-Cook. That stretch receives about 20,400 vehicle trips daily, according to the latest Illinois Department of Transportation statistics.
Drivers will be encouraged to use an official detour by going east on Lake-Cook, south on Rand Road to Hicks Road and then to westbound Dundee. Drivers can reconnect with southbound Quentin at Dundee or head north if visiting Deer Grove West or residential subdivisions.
Deer Park sits on the border of where Quentin meets Lake-Cook. Village Administrator Beth McAndrews said the Lake County Sheriff's Office, which patrols Deer Park, has been notified of the shutdown and the town is prepared for potential traffic problems.
Cook County Board Commissioner Gregg Goslin of Glenview, whose district includes Palatine, said the transportation and highway department determined the bridge work was necessary to keep it safe until a possible full road replacement in two or three years.
However, Ottesen said it's "very unfortunate" the county will perform the repairs without addressing the overall poor condition along Quentin.
The county has been considering a full renovation of the roadway, but that would not occur until 2021 at the earliest, according to documents submitted to the Northwest Council of Mayors Technical Committee. The committee includes Northwest suburban mayors and village managers who identify and address local transportation needs.
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 hosted focus group about the project in January.