Submitted By
Bill McKenna, Village Engineer
Reviewed By
CLP
Agenda Item Title
Title
A Resolution Approving the Letter of Intent between the Village of Oak Park and the Illinois Department of Transportation for the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290) Reconstruction Project and Authorizing its Execution
End
Overview
Overview
The Letter of Intent (LOI) between the Village of Oak Park and Illinois Department of Transportation has been finalized. The LOI confirms the Village’s concurrence with the proposed I-290 Reconstruction Project plans in Oak Park, the cost participation responsibilities, the maintenance/jurisdictional responsibilities and outline items for future consideration during the design phase of the project.
Body
Staff Recommendation
Approval.
Fiscal Impact
The LOI does not obligate the Village of Oak Park at this time to the financial participation identified - rather a successor Intergovernmental Agreement will establish local funding commitments and the Village will be able to fund these from various sources a revenue, including grants. The Village will begin to plan for this future expenditure in the five year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The successor IGA is projected to be presented for adoption in 2020 following Phase II design engineering and is subject to funding by the State for such work.
Background
On July 18, 2016, a draft LOI was presented to the Village Board for review and discussion. Commetns from that meeting have been incorporated and the recommended document has been updated to reflect the Board’s concensus.
Upon conclusion of the ten Special Village Board meetings during 2015 and 2016, the Village Board has determined that the Village of Oak Park support for a reconstructed I-290 is subject to a project that is designed to:
1. Provide safety and convenience for all users, e.g., pedestrians, cyclists, and persons of all ages and abilities, especially at the interchanges with Harlem Avenue and Austin Boulevard;
2. Avoid and/or mitigate noise and/or air quality impacts;
3. Improve the CTA Blue Line by incorporating design elements generally described as "Urban Stitching";
4. Retain opportunities for expand bridge decking to connect Oak Park residents south of the I-290 to the public school systems, public parks and government facilities and connect residents north of the I-290 to the public school systems, public parks and government facilities;
5. Incorporate corridor aesthetics and community identity;
6. Maintain critical public utility connections;
7. Protect opportunities for local financial obligations to be mitigated by other sources of revenues including grants;
8. Incorporate construction planning and staging efforts which account for police, fire and public works emergency services; and
9. Incorporate new technologies in the design phase that would improve these key priorities.
At the May 23, 2016 and July 11, 2016 Board Special Meetings staff presented an overview of the Letter of Intent (LOI) between the Village of Oak Park and Illinois Department of Transportation. The LOI between the Village of Oak Park and Illinois Department of Transportation will ultimately confirm the Village’s concurrence with the proposed I-290 Reconstruction Project plan, the cost participation responsibilities, the maintenance/jurisdictional responsibilities for the subject project, and outline other items for consideration during the future design phase of the project.
Staff presented a series of charts which establish the Village’s understanding to date regarding the multiple aspects of the proposed I-290 Project, including but not limited to:
• Local cost to participation responsibilities for Oak Park;
• Maintenance/jurisdictional responsibilities for Oak Park;
These charts will be the foundation, and are included as exhibits to the LOI being presented to the Village Board for approval. Further, the LOI will form the basis for a future Intergovernmental Agreement between the Village and IDOT, scheduled to be developed during Phase II design and it is projected the IGA would be adopted in 2020.
It is also noted that staff has incorporated public comments, Village Board comments and direction received at the July 11, 2016 Special Meeting and the July 18, 2016 Regular Meeting into the resolution which approves the LOI and/or the LOI as appropriate. Specially, staff has incorporated the following for items:
• Critical Partners: The Village of Oak Park has identified CTA, Metra and PACE as critical partners in the success of a reconstructed I-290 and staff should advocate for their inclusion in Intergovernmental Agreement with IDOT.
• Potential Negative Impacts on Adjacent Properties: In advance of an intergovernmental agreement with IDOT, Village staff is directed to review the potential negative impacts on properties adjacent to or near the interstate of their value in Oak Park to determine the merits of programs to support rehabilitation loans or equity assurance and schedule a Special Meeting of the Village Board to consider the same.
• Ground Vibrations: In advance of an intergovernmental agreement with IDOT, staff will report on a coordinated program to provide advance documentation of property conditions for those at risk of ground vibrations during construction and a compatible dispute resolution process taking into account lessons learned by IDOT as part of the Morgan Street Bridge reconstruction project.
• Sustainable Practices: In advance of an intergovernmental agreement with IDOT, staff will report on how new sustainable practices for traffic, lighting, solar, noise and air quality should be incorporated into the design of the reconstructed I-290 that would advance the Village Board’s stated key local priorities.
• CSX Corporation’s Right-of-Way: In advance of an intergovernmental agreement with IDOT, will report on status of the CSX Corporation’s right-of-way and any opportunity for additional right-of-way to be included into the design of the reconstructed I-290 that would advance the Village Board’s stated key local priorities.
• IDOT Scorecard: In advance of an intergovernmental agreement with IDOT, staff will report on IDOTs scorecard under the Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool (INVEST) developed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to evaluate sustainability features.
Alternatives
The Village Board could seek additional information and defer action to gain additional information.
Previous Board Action
Below is a summary of the previous ten Village Board Special Meetings related to the reconstruction of I-290.
On February 18, 2015 the Village Board approved a Motion directing staff to schedule a series of Special Meetings focused on developing a list of detailed I-290 reconstruction requirements to be incorporated into a Letter of Intent with the Illinois Department of Transportation and identified key local priorities and areas of concerns to include:
1. Safety and convenience for all users, e.g., pedestrians, cyclists, and persons of all ages and abilities, especially at the interchanges with Harlem and Austin;
2. Methods for avoiding or mitigate noise and/or air quality impacts;
3. Chicago Transit Authority (“CTA”) Blue Line improvements, including those generally described as "Urban Stitching";
4. Locations and extent of expanded bridge decking options;
5. Elements related to corridor aesthetics and community identity;
6. Coordination with public critical utilities;
7. Project financing sources and any local obligations;
8. Construction planning and staging; and
9. Flexibility to discuss options beneficial to Oak Park; and
On April 27, 2015 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting, staff presented the progress and IDOT commitments for improved roadway geometry and sidewalk widths over I-290 to ensure adequate room for all modes of transportation.
On July 13, 2015 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting staff presented the traffic analysis of Harlem Avenue and Austin Boulevard at the interchanges with I-290.
On August 24, 2015 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting staff presented the Harlem Avenue/I-290 interchange design along with its effects on air quality and noise.
On September 28, 2015 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting staff presented the Austin Boulevard/I-290 interchange design along with its effects on air quality and noise.
On October 26, 2015 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting staff presented a summary of the traffic noise abatement analysis on noise walls and the solicitation process for determining if individual noise wall segments are included with the project and the CTA also presented its Blue Line Forest Park Branch Feasibility/Vision Study.
On February 22, 2016 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting staff presented an update on the status of the noise wall balloting and a discussion of conceptual level aesthetic treatments for the vehicle and pedestrian bridges over I-290 and for potential aesthetic treatments for noise walls.
On April 11, 2016 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting, IDOT presented a summary of IDOT’s approach and methodology to mitigating construction impacts during the design phases of the project and the construction staging of the I-290 reconstruction project including preliminary improvements to parallel routes, advanced construction work for bridges, and ultimately mainline pavement work.
On May 9, 2016 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting, IDOT and the Village presented an evaluation of the right-of-way (ROW) within the ditch to determine its optimal use, sustainability features of the reconstruction project, and two options related to expanded bridge decking at Oak Park Avenue and East Avenue.
On May 23, 2016 as part of the Village Board Special Meeting, the Village presented the elements to be incorporated into a proposed Letter of Intent (“LOI”) between the Village of Oak Park and Illinois Department of Transportation and presented a series of tables which summarize the cost sharing and maintenance responsibility for the various items which are shared between the Village and IDOT on this project. These tables include lighting, bicycle and pedestrian facilities, aesthetic features with hardscaping and landscaping components, utility replacements and improvements, and traffic signals, which will become and attachment to the LOI. Other items of concern to the Village are CTA Blue Line coordination, noise wall status, expanded bridge decking, staffing for construction management, construction impact monitoring, parallel roadway improvements, and other matters which were presented for discussion at said meeting.
On July 11, 2016, as part of the Village Board Special Meeting, a final review of the LOI exhibits was presented and as a part of that discussion, there was Village Board consensus related to the LOI exhibits to be included.
On July 11, 2016, the Village Board additionally expressed its desire to ensure there are continued efforts by the Village related to the reconstruction of the I-290 which include: (1) public transportation advocacy to reduce the impact of traffic in Oak Park during reconstruction of the I-290 corridor with an emphasis on the CTA’s Blue Line as a viable option to driving, as well as METRA and PACE; (2) review and evaluation of programs related to property value protection for homes adjacent to and near the I-290; (3) review and evaluation of a coordinated program to provide advance documentation of property conditions for those at risk of ground vibrations during construction and a compatible dispute resolution process; and (4) traffic management before and during construction.
Citizen Advisory Commission Action
N/A.
Anticipated Future Actions/Commitments
A successor IGA is anticipated in 2020. In advance of that time, staff will schedule - as early as 2017 special meetings of the Village Board in preparation for the IGA discussions on topics including but not limited to construction monitoring, coordination and local aesthetic designs.
Intergovernmental Cooperation Opportunities
The reconstruction of the I-290 is being done under the leadership of the State of Illinois.
Performance Management (MAP) Alignment
N/A.