Rt. 173 Corridor Plan Receives National Recognition
The National Association of Counties (NACo) selected the Rt. 173/I-94 Corridor Intergovernmental Agreement as a recipient of a 2007 Center for Sustainable Communities Award. Lake County is one
of ten communities to receive this distinguished recognition. When announcing the award, Abigail Friedman, NACo Program Director, Community Services, stated, “The award is a testament to Lake County’s success, innovation and collaboration in creating communities that embody economic vitality, environmental stewardship and social equity…and is a tribute to your county leaders, your partners
and your community.”
The Rt. 173 Plan addresses future growth along the corridor from Hunt Club Road to Rt. 41. It is the result of a unique collaboration between Lake County and the municipalities of Old Mill Creek, Wadsworth and Zion. The Rt. 173 Corridor Council was formed in 2003. The Council developed and adopted an inter-governmental agreement that establishes land use, building, site design and infrastructure standards for this area, which includes approximately 800 acres of undeveloped land.
The I-94 inter-change at Rt. 173 is the last undeveloped freeway interchange in Northern Illinois and is located just south of one of Wisconsin’s premier industrial parks. The purpose of the agreement is to: encourage economic development, contribute to a positive tax base for the school systems, develop
high quality community services and create complimentary development standards along the corridor.
The council consists of: Lake County board members Randy Whitmore and Judy Martini, Old Mill Creek President Tim Smith, Zion Mayor Lane Harrison and Wadsworth Village President Glenn Ryback. Ken Furlan, the former Wadsworth Village President, served on the council during the development of the agreement. The group met regularly to study development alternatives by analyzing surrounding developments and best practices.
County Board Member Randy Whitmore, who represents Wadsworth, Beach Park and parts of Waukegan said, “This agreement will give us the ability to compete with Wisconsin for economic development. All of the partners recognized the potential here, so we worked together to realize
these opportunities.”
Lake County Board Member Judy Martini, who represents Antioch, Old Mill Creek and parts of Wadsworth said, “This is the first inter-governmental agreement of its kind in Lake County and will serve as a model for future multi-community collaboration. We are proud and excited that NACo has recognized our efforts.”
The NACo Sustainable Communities Awards will be presented at a special ceremony held in January in Washington D.C. The agreement will also be the subject of a detailed profile in a NACo best practices publication highlighting this year’s ten winning initiatives. For information on the Center for Sustainable Communities, visit www.naco.org/sustainable.
The complete agreement is available at www.co.lake.il.us/planning/support/projects/projects_173.asp. |
