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Glenview Trustees Talk Traffic For Proposed Kiddie Academy


Glenview Village Hall

Traffic was the biggest concern Glenview village trustees had of the proposed Kiddie Academy day care center at 622 Waukegan Road, directly adjacent to the coming 178-unit Active Living Apartments at 624 Waukegan.

Under the proposed site plan, which trustees took their first look at April 17, Harmony Lane would be vacated and access points into and out of the facility would be shared with Active Living. Curb cuts would be realigned with Palmgren and Carriage Hill drives.

At issue is how traffic patterns would allow access in and out of the site. Because Waukegan Road is a state route, the Illinois Dept. of Transportation has some authority over curb cuts and access roads. Considerations include mandates in the village’s Waukegan Corridor Plan, which mandates closing curb cuts, safety and IDOT’s desire for full access to sites.

Of nine options, five were eliminated by IDOT as unacceptable. Of the remaining four options, village officials said IDOT was supportive of one labeled “option C1” which would allow left turns in and out of Active Living’s parking lot aligned with Palmgren Drive, an in-only lane aligned with Carriage Hill Drive, and an additional exit point through a further south exit point from Active Living’s parking lot.

Although Glenview plan commissioners recommended option C1, Trustee Debby Karton proposed another plan, designated “option D,” that would allow only right turns in and out of the property. She said residents have expressed concerns about added traffic on Waukegan from the Active Living development.

Village President Jim Patterson broke the trustees’ tie vote to support the plan using traffic for option D. The plan, with traffic option D included, is expected come before village trustees again for second consideration at their Tuesday, May 1 village board meeting.

Developers of the day care center said if option D were the final vote, they would consider selling the land and walking away from the project.

As part of that planned street realignment and site plan, the village would sell Harmony Lane to day care developers to allow easier access to the site. Village trustees did not take a formal vote on the land sale, but were asked to provide direction to village staff. Trustees came to a consensus to allow for the property sale, so long as there was some kind of option not to move forward if developers back out.

As far as traffic interactions, traffic engineers said because Active Living is more of a senior-oriented community, expected peak traffic times for the day care center in early morning and mid-afternoon hours would not conflict with traffic patterns expected by Active Living residents.

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