The Barrington Hills Chronicle (a Riding Club of Barrington Hills splinter group), posted what follows on Wednesday:
“The Riding Club of Barrington Hills is inviting all volunteers this Saturday, May 14th, to a roadside clean-up campaign on Route 62 (Algonquin Road). A meeting at the the Riding Center on Bateman Road will start at 8:30am (this Saturday, May 14th), or feel free to join whenever it is convenient for you. Every Saturday in May is the clean-up plan.”
In addition, three additional events are taking place tomorrow:
These activities are occurring at the same time tomorrow morning, primarily along Bateman, Algonquin, Brinker, and County Line Roads.
Readers are encouraged to exercise extreme caution when driving in these areas. On any given day, the Village has two patrol people covering the entire Village, and even with additional resources allocated, they hopefully will not be overwhelmed.
Patching and resurfacing will require intermittent daytime lane closures in the Barrington, Lake Zurich and Deer Park areas beginning Monday, May 9th, weather permitting.
Work is scheduled for Lake-Cook Road/County Line Road/Main Street from Hart Road in Barrington to Rue Touraine in Lake Zurich, passing through Deer Park.
The $4.2 million improvements consist of resurfacing the 4.6-mile stretch of Lake-Cook Road/County Line Road/Main Street and constructing new ADA-compliant sidewalk ramps. Work is expected to be completed in October. Access to residences and businesses within the work zone will be maintained throughout construction.
Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. Some of the topics on their agenda include:
[Vote] A Resolution Authorizing the Execution of a Contract with Corrective Asphalt Materials LLC (CAM) for Pavement Rejuvenation and CRF Application on Select Village Maintained Roads Resolution 22 –
[Vote] Board of Health Appointments (4)
[Vote] Equestrian Commission Appointments (4)
[Vote] Plan Commission Appointments (3)
[Vote] Zoning Board of Appeals Appointments (2)
[Vote] Police Pension Board Appointments (2)
A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.
The Roads & Bridges Committee will meet today at 4:00 PM. A copy of their agenda can be viewed here.
Today’s topic of discussion is a proposal to, “Apply CRF to approximately 4,000 SY of selected asphalt pavement.” Proposed prices are included in the agenda.
Unfortunately, audio recordings from the special March 22 Roads & Bridges meeting are unavailable for review. Eight companies bid for the 2022 roads program at that meeting, and Orange Crush, LLC was awarded the contract.
The Roads & Bridges Committee will meet today at 4:00 PM. The primary focus of the meeting appears to be the review of bids submitted for the 2022 Road Program.
Eight companies submitted bids. The highest bid was $669,866.48 from Geske and Son, and the lowest was $373,441.63 from Orange Crush.
In our last newsletter (December 2020), we described the additional analysis and evaluation required to select the preferred alternative due to the presence of federally listed threatened and endangered species: Hine’s Emerald Dragonfly and Rusty Patched Bumblebee. Over the last year, the project team has continued coordinating with agencies such as the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Forest Preserves of Cook County (FPDCC), the US Geological Survey (USGS), and the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) to conduct the Biological Assessment (BA). The BA analyzes and determines the project’s effect on these species and/or their critical habitat, and documents the measures taken to avoid, minimize, and/or mitigate the impacts.
Two critical elements of the BA are the groundwater monitoring and analysis, which will be completed in early 2022, and the prescribed burn of the Spring Creek Forest Preserve, which was completed in 2021. You may have also noticed crews trudging through the marshy areas along IL 62 in the late fall as shown in Figure 2 (below). These crews are delineating wetlands within the Spring Creek Forest Preserve to help better identify potential habitat for the Hine’s Emerald Dragonfly within the study area. We anticipate the wetland delineation to be completed in the spring of 2022.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS?
Once the BA is complete, the project team can continue analyzing the impacts of the two remaining alternatives and select a preferred alternative. While the two remaining alternatives are both 4-lanes, one has shoulders, and one has curb and gutter. After the preferred alternative is selected, geometric and drainage improvements, and non-motorized accommodations will be refined and presented to stakeholders.”
A copy of the update can be viewed and downloaded here.
“INVITATION TO BID NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Barrington Hills will receive sealed Bids until the 18th day of March 2022 at 2:00 p.m. local time at the Village of Barrington Hills, 112 Algonquin Road, Barrington Hills, IL 60010 at which time the Bids will be publicly opened and read aloud for the following project:
VILLAGE OF BARRINGTON HILLS 2022 ROAD PROGRAM Work description: Provide all labor, services and materials necessary for the resurfacing of various roads throughout the Village of Barrington Hills. This work consists of: HMA Surface Removal, Class D Patches, HMA Resurfacing and other associated improvement required to complete the project in accordance with the plans, specifications and all other applicable standards.
The Contract Documents may be inspected and purchased at Trotter and Associates, Inc., 38 W Grand Ave, Fox Lake, IL 60020, beginning February 24, 2022. Contact Amy Whitis at a.whitis@trotter-inc.com to purchase the contract docs. Hard and/or electronic copies are available. Payment for Contract Documents is non-refundable and shall be payable to Trotter and Associates, Inc. in the form of cash, certified check or money order. No partial sets of specifications or drawings will be issued.
The non-refundable cost for plans and specifications is $50.00. Addenda will be issued only to plan holders. Bidders will be required to provide Bid security equal to five (5) percent of the Bid in the form of a Bid Bond written by a company properly licensed in Illinois, a certified check or a cashier’s check.
The successful Bidder must also comply with all the provisions of the Davis-Bacon Act and all wages must comply with the Illinois Department of Labor Prevailing Wages for McHenry, Lake, Cook, and Kane Counties. The Village of Barrington Hills, in accordance with the Laws of the State of Illinois, hereby notifies all Bidders that the Village reserves the right to reject any and all Bids, to waive minor informalities or technicalities, to advertise for new bids, or to request confirmation or clarification from any bidder regarding information contained in a bid.
The Village will affirmatively ensure that the contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement will be awarded to a responsible and responsive Bidder without discrimination on the grounds of race, color or national origin, but the Owner reserves the right to reject any or all Bids received and to waive formalities.
Your Bid will be required to be submitted under a condition of irrevocability for a period of sixty (60) days after submission. Bids shall be received in a sealed envelope addressed to Village of Barrington Hills, 112 Algonquin Road, Barrington Hills, IL 60010 which is marked in the lower left-hand corner EXACTLY as follows:
BID: Village of Barrington Hills 2022 Road Resurfacing Program”
The Village Board of Trustees will be holding their monthly meeting this evening at 6:30 PM. The meeting will include a public hearing on the 2022 Annual Appropriations Ordinance. A copy of the 2021 Appropriations Ordinance can be viewed here for comparison.
A copy of the agenda can be viewed here. Those wishing to listing in on the meeting can phone 508-924-1464.
Cuba Road east of Rte. 14 is plowed by Cuba Township
Cuba Road west of Rte. 14 in our village is currently plowed by Mac’s
For nearly fifteen years, our Village benefitted from the snow plowing services provided by the Cuba Township Road District. Inexplicably, in September of last year, Trustees Ekstrom, Croll, Riff and Strauss awarded our snow plowing services contract to Mac’s Property Management Services of Wauconda. The results have been abysmal.
The images above best illustrate the new service experienced by our residents this Winter. After a recent snow event, Cuba Township plowed Cuba Road east of Route 14 Lake Barrington, and the photo at top shows the results of their work. A photo was then taken of Cuba Road in our Village within minutes of the first photo capture, and it was plowed by Mac’s. The difference is significant and concerning.
At best, Mac’s snow plowing services have been consistently shoddy, with slow (or sometimes no) service being the experience of many residents. Lack of deicing is an oft heard complaint, and as recent as Friday’s afternoon snowfall, many witnessed their own driveways being plowed before Mac’s employees bothered to show up.
We cannot allow substandard service on our Village roads. The modest decrease in expense does not justify the liability our Board of Trustees has exposed our residents to.
Our Village does have an “out” clause with Mac’s, but Roads & Bridges Chair, Laura Ekstrom, couldn’t recall if it was 30 or 60 days. The point is moot, however, since by the time our Village Attorney sorts it out, Mac’s will be mowing lawns.
The decision to discontinue Cuba Township’s services has been a huge error in judgement, and we’re being generous in that assessment. We’re just fortunate we don’t have to call it a tragic one (yet).
