Story posted Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Casino 1st, Rest Of River Road 2nd
The city of Des Plaines and Illinois Dept. of Transportation (IDOT) have agreed to separate a major highway reconstruction project that will allow for work to begin sooner on a stretch of roadway that will serve the planned new casino.
The agreement sets the stage for construction work on River Road between Devon and Touhy avenues to be completed before similar work from Touhy north to Rand Road commences. The widening work between Devon and Touhy will accommodate anticipated heavy traffic heading into and out of the state's 10th casino that will be located on the west side of River Road about two blocks north of Devon. Plans also call for Des Plaines to eventually take over responsibility for maintaining River Road from Devon to Rand once construction is completed.
"In order to avoid conflicts between the road reconstruction and casino work, IDOT has prepared the attached Letter of Intent to separate the project into two segments," according to a Des Plaines Engineering Dept. document. "The south project limits would be Touhy Avenue to Devon Avenue while the north project limits would be Rand Road to Touhy Avenue. The Letter of Intent is necessary for IDOT to complete the project design and allow for construction of the south segment to occur before construction of the casino in 2011. The much longer northern segment will be built between 2011 and 2012."
Casino developers and owners, Midwest Gaming and Entertainment LLC told the Illinois Gaming Board last week that it believes site work in preparation of full-scale construction will begin in March with an opening slated about 16 months later. Last December, the Gaming Board accepted Midwest's proposal over several others including one representing a plan for a Rosemont operation.
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