McHenry County Blog

A third email to the county board from the Fleming Road Alliance:

To:  Ken Koehler, Chair, McHenry County Board; County Board Members

From: Fleming Road Alliance

Re: Update on Fleming Road Alliance Position on Improvements for Fleming Road

Tonight’s topic is the “clear zone”.

Here's the widening poster from the original Fleming Road improvement hearing.

Clear Zone: TranSystems initially designed for a 14’ “clear zone” along each side of the road. They later reduced the clear zone requirement to 7’.

Old red and white oaks would be chopped down if Fleming Road is widened.

A total of 282 fixed objects have been identified in the clear zone. Most of the fixed objects in the clear zone are older trees that have been around since the Civil War and before. The construction itself will kill many more trees simply because of the root disturbance.

Fleming Road has one of the last Oak Hickory Forest areas in the County. Knowing the true extent of potential tree loss will inform our decision making process and the CAG recommendation.

As of this date, MCDOT has refused to allow input from experts on the impact to the trees.

The road also serves as a crossing in a wildlife corridor that will be further disrupted.

The yard sign says, "Daffodils NOT Asphalt."

In addition, twenty-five years of Daffodil tradition will be almost completely wiped out by grading.

International studies on Health, Wealth and Welfare clearly indicate the benefits of tree-lined roadways.  Sticking to the footprint does the least amount of damage.

We ask that MCDOT seek a variance or waiver of the clear zone.

Fleming Road Alliance Organizing Committee

Ed Bennett, Mary Moltman. Lisa Rhoades, Marti Jadd, Linda Ramsey, Stanley Jarosz, Phyllis Keinz, Kevin Keesee, Emily Berendt, Deb Staley, Bjorn Mattsson

Another letter from to the McHenry County Board from the Flemming Road Alliance:

To:  Ken Koehler, Chair, McHenry County Board; County Board Members

Re: Update on Fleming Road Alliance Position on Improvements for Fleming Road.

Dear County Board Representatives:

Here is the Fleming Road Alliance information on Pavement and Lane and Shoulder Width

Pavement: Initially, some of us felt that the road should be simply resurfaced.

Some felt that a partial rebuild of the base would be necessary.

McHenry County Highway Department employees patch Fleming Road.

At CAG #2, a presentation of the pavement condition and causes of existing problems was followed by a group discussion that resulted in a general understanding that much of the base of the road needs to be replaced.

The use of modern technology and better materials available today will help extend the life of the road.  We anticipate that MCDOT will use the best possible materials.

Lane Width and Shoulders:  The striped driving lane is currently 10’ with the pavement varying between 10.5’ and 11’. The shoulder varies between 0’ and 2’ along the road depending on surface conditions.  This is the existing footprint. We request that it not be widened..

The width of the pavement is the key element to a) achieving the project and community goals or b) starting a destructive and expensive ripple effect on the roadway and community.

Consultant TranSystem’s design plans show at minimum an 11’ lane and a 4’ paved shoulder.  Even in design option 4, entitled “Reconstruction Maintaining Same Profile” the lane is 11’.  That is not the same footprint.

Widening the lane width by even a foot increases the need for grading and filling to stabilize the edge, creates drainage problems where none exist, (See Curb and Gutter, Ditching, Drainage), requires more extensive work to correct cross-sections, and creates access problems at driveway entrances. It also endangers more trees.

We ask what we have asked all along, that the road remain in the same footprint. We have requested that if required for funding, MCDOT seek a variance from IDOT standards to allow a varied shoulder width. MCDOT has also indicated that the shoulder must be paved. We have asked that the shoulders remain grass with 1-foot gravel drain channels where absolutely necessary. Changing the current lane and shoulder width will create drainage problems. (See Curb and Gutter, Ditching, Drainage).

We also have brought information to MCDOT on a new, highly recommended edging technique called the Safety Edge that reduces accidents while supporting the pavement edge (increased stability increases life of pavement which increases return on investment).  MCDOT has not indicated an interest in this new design feature.  We would like to know that this technology is being considered and the reasons for or against its applicability to Fleming Road.

Fleming Road Alliance Organizing Committee

Ed Bennett, Mary Moltman. Lisa Rhoades, Marti Jadd, Linda Ramsey, Stanley Jarosz, Phyllis Keinz, Kevin Keesee,Emily Berendt, Deb  Staley, Bjorn Mattsson

A communication to the McHenry County Board:

To:  Ken Koehler, Chair, McHenry County Board; County Board Members

From: Fleming Road Alliance

Re: Update on Fleming Road Alliance Position on Improvements for Fleming Road.

Dear County Board Representatives:

Overview: It’s been a while since we communicated with you, so we wanted to touch base with you on our position on the proposed Fleming Road improvements.

"Cut Speed Not Trees" advises this sign.

We have been meeting as part of the Community Advisory Group (CAG) under the IDOT Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) guidelines and appreciate the willingness of the Division of Transportation to learn the process with us.

We believe that working cooperatively through the CSS process is valuable.

The unique nature of Fleming Road presents an opportunity for the MCDOT to be a leader state-wide in the application of CSS to a project and to serve as an example written up in professional journals, as well as to assure that taxpayer money is being spent wisely and efficiently.

The MCDOT stated project goal is:

To develop a preferred plan for Fleming Road which replaces the deteriorated pavement, improves safety, maintains the character of the corridor, while minimizing the disturbance to adjacent property owners.

We agree with the project goal but have different interpretations of some of the terms.

We asked during CAG #1 that mutual understanding of terms and intent be achieved to enable us all to move positively through the process to the finished product.

MCDOT held an Open House on March 23, 2010.  The Fleming Road Alliance was created at that meeting from a ground swell of concern by the residents, roadway travelers and the neighboring local public.  The FRA represents well over 1000 active concerned citizens.

Our initial position was based on the 400+ public comments submitted to MCDOT at the Open House.   These were summarized into a survey circulated at the first Fleming Road Alliance meeting on May 5, 2010 to determine the strength of positions and priorities.

1. Replace the base only where proven necessary.
2. Keep the lanes the same width they are currently
3. Retain the existing shoulder width in a given location
4. Don’t add curbs and gutters.  This is not a city street.
5. Don’t add ditches. The existing drainage is working well.
6. Leave the intersections at Bull Valley, Country Club Rd. and 120 as is.
7. Don’t add turn lanes.
8. Reduce the speed limit to 30 mph.
9. Keep the posted weight limit of 6 tons per axle.
10. Keep the hills and the valleys.
11. Keep the curves.
12. Keep all the Oaks, Hardwoods and other native trees.
13. Do not dig up the daffodils. Replace any accidentally dug up with a planted double quantity.
14. Respect our historic and scenic value. Make the least disturbance possible.

Yellow tape has replaced the daffodils on Fleming Road.

The FRA summarized the results of the public comment/survey as “Keep the Same Footprint”, meaning the driving lanes are striped at 10’, the total pavement width remains between 21 and 22’, the shoulders are not widened and when the contractor finishes the project, the road looks the same. We have consistently adhered to this position.

It became very clear at the FRA May 3, 2010 meeting, that an additional concern from the citizens was and is the COST of the project and undisclosed justifications.  Please see

Cost Effectiveness.

During the CAG meeting process, the consultant TranSystems first presented us with two design options. Both of these options, Options 1 & 2 were soundly rejected as they far exceeded (over-engineered) the need to meet the goal of the project.

The CAG request that a third Option be worked on as a group was not responded to.

A summary list of CAG comments and recommendations was sent to MCDOT and TranSystems at TranSystems request. TranSystems then presented Options 3 & 4 at our CAG meeting on June 8, 2011.

Of the two, Option 4 comes closer to meeting the CAG recommendations, but still raises concerns about several issues, as explained in subsequent emails.

We have learned a lot over the past year and we would like to take this opportunity to offer and explain some of our own design criteria and solutions as we work through the topics to follow.  We are asking for your support.

Saturday Fleming Road was dedicated as a Scenic Drive.

First there was a Pledging of Allegiance to the Flag.

At the beginning of the ceremony, the sign was covered. Ray Pensinger is seen on the left. Nick Chirkos, Chairman of the McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission, is on the right.

Speaking at the event was District 5 McHenry County Board member Tina Hill, who read Robert Frost’s “The Road Less Traveled,” as the wind blew her hair and into the microphone.

Tina Hill speaks before the unveiling of the Scenic Drive sign on Fleming Road.

When it came time to uncover the sign, the designated women needed help from one of the tall men.

"Some assistance, please."

Time for the formal shots.

Nancy Jung (left) and Lynn Pensinger (right), co-founders of the Bull Valley Daffodil Project, stand under the unveiled sign.

Now is the time to drive the roads of Bull Valley. The daffodils are blooming beautifully.

Michelle Krenger (left) took the photos of Fleming Road for the Scenic Drive application, and Lisa Halma Rhoades wrote the narrative that indicated the ways in which Fleming Road satisfied all six requirements of historic, architectural, archeology, cultural, scenic, and natural.

After the sign was uncovered, it was off to the Woodstock Country Club for a reception.

Marilyn and John Krenger drown their vintage car to the Woodstock Country Club for a celebratory reception.

= = = = =
Photos by Mary Moltmann.

The following press release found in a McHenry County email explains a celebration being held Saturday afternoon by those who don’t want county government to turn Fleming Road into an eastern truck bypass for Woodstock.

Amongst the blooming daffodils on Fleming Road is a sign reading, "Daffodils NOT Asphalt."

The McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission will be dedicating Fleming Road in Bull Valley, IL as McHenry County’s 8th Scenic Road.

When:    Saturday, April 30, 2011 at 1:00 p.m.

Where:   Near the intersection of Fleming and Bull Valley Roads.

Please park park along the shoulders of the road to avoid the grass and plants.

Oaks that would presumably be removed if the County Trasnporation Department's plan to widen Flrming Road is implemented.

Click here to view the dedication ceremony program!

Click here to learn more about McHenry County Scenic Roads and the McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission!

= = = = =

I am told that the owners of the Right-of-Way, that is the property owners along Fleming Road, have dedicated a conservation easement to a conservation organization.

"Cut Speed NOT Trees" says this partically obscrued yard sign.

But they have done something else, as well.

They have also dedicated the easement to the Village of Bull Valley.

I am told that one governmental unit cannot condemn land within the boundaries of another one.

If so, that would seem to checkmate any county government ambitions to seize property through eminent domain proceedings so as to turn Fleming Road into a thoroughfare wider than residents desire.

That’s what Fleming Road resident Lisa Rhoades told the McHenry County Department of Transportation Tuesday.

Her comments follow:

The State of Illinois has provided us with the Vision of Transportation for the 21st Century:  The cornerstone words are Livable and Sustainable.  These words are specifically intended to guide Transportation Design to primarily benefit the Individual Community that a roadway will serve while providing a means for non-local residents to travel through.

Some highlights on the State of the Fleming Road Project:

First, there is a threshhold issue that needs your attention:  A multi-million dollar project was launched by this body on a Consent Agenda.  A Cost /Benefit Analysis could not have been presented let alone refined during this authorization process – bypassing due diligence.  We ask that one is conducted post-haste.

At the urging of the Fleming Road Alliance (FRA) and to comply with IDOT Context Sensitive Solutions Policy, a mandated Community Advisory Group (CAG) was organized. Its composition is heavy in governmental entities, TranSystems engineers and MCDOT Engineers. The membership list is attached to this note.

With the State of Illinois Vision in mind, the CAG developed Project Goals that support the Vision -

1. Replace Deteriorated Pavement
2. Improve Safety
3. Maintain Character of Corridor
4. Minimize Impact to Residents

A couple of summers ago the McHenry County Transportation Department patched part of Flemming Road.

With those Goals in Mind, Design Criteria was presented by MCDOT. Fleming Road Alliance and individuals, including me, requested the addition of Design Criteria that included the a) Irreplaceable Class III groundwater, b) the sensitive aquifer, c) and the full functioning ecosystem provided by the historic forests, among others.

This process that is designed to reach consensus through collaboration has broken down. Input on Design Criteria from the CAG has been ignored. Only TranSystems and MCDOT concerns are reflected.

This is like answering a question with only partial information – as we all know, a little bit of knowledge is dangerous.

During the Study Phase, MCDOT determined that statistically, safety concerns did not rise to a level that required remediation. Therefore Time, Money and Energy for designing to safety standards were not necessary and prudently should be eliminated.  In other words, It is not necessary to Idiot Proof the road.

Drainage was also proven to be a problem in only two specific spots along the road – the prudent response would also be to only design drainage solutions for those two spots.  Yet, instead of pulling resources from those activities, designs just received for CAG#4, significantly alter infiltration, drainage, tree placement, slopes etc. along the entire roadway.

A lot has been made of Saving Trees.

The U.S. Department of Transportation studies show that Tall Trees along narrow pavement are proven to be safer to the motoring public than no trees along wide open roads.

The sign says, "Save Our Trees & Hills"

It’s a simple matter of when a driver “feels” the need to pay attention.

A sample of the many facits of a trees value to our county and community are:

• economic,
• health,
• safety,
• privacy,
• environmental, etc.

At the last CAG#3, Kevin Keesee clearly stated that the Design Criteria have still not been updated.

This means that not only are we being ignored, but resources are being spent to design for issues that do not require remediation.

Who is in charge of monitoring and altering the finances of the project?

It seems like the Fox is running the Hen House!

Some materials for CAG 4 have been put out and dogmatically continue:

• ignoring the input from the residents,
• ignoring the full picture of the design criteria
• ignoring the decisions and consensus from the CAG
• and ignoring the results of the Trans Systems own studies.

In addition, the conditions and allowances for the Natural Heritage Corridor that is being built along Fleming Road, also need to be inserted into the designs.

Working with this new and exciting program will show that the CSS process and the democratic process are alive and well in McHenry County.

Every project using significant funds requires periodic evaluation of Readiness to determine when it is appropriate to move on to the next phase.

As the body with final responsibility for McHenry County transportation projects, the taxpayers rely on you and ask you to determine if the Fleming Road Project Status indicates

• Green – Go (to the next phase),
• Yellow – Caution (More discovery needed),
• Red – Stop (Conditions have changed or problems exist that must be addressed).

A Readiness Evaluation considers all of the major issues of a project in their fluid / evolving state:  Financial, Management, Environment, Communication, Economic, Goals and Objectives.

The Evaluation asks the make or break questions.

Because there are so many important questions that are not answered, I am happy to schedule a work session with any of you interested in building the Readiness Evaluation.

Please take charge of this process. Democracy is circumvented when elected officials are not actively involved.

Since opponents of McHenry County’s proposal to improve Fleming Road through Bull Valley have made it easy to post what they said in a public hearing this week, I’ll post some of their comments here.

This is a road that runs from Route 120 to Country Club Road. Some objectors believe that it is being improved to be an eastern by-pass of Woodstock, suitable for heavy trucks.

First, lets take a look at what Emily Berendt said:

The Fleming Road Alliance respectfully requests that the McHenry County Board review the policies and procedures of the McHenry County Division of Transportation.

Emily Berendt speaking at the Management Services Committee on ALAW's proposed conflict of interest ordinance,.

We should not be wasting funds by overdesigning and over constructing where simple, cost-effective solutions are available. Everything I read indicates that the philosophy today is to make the road fit the community. I refer you to this link for a federal publication that directs flexibility modifications to the Green Book.

The issue of right-of-way concerns me greatly. A MCDOT engineer at the recent Alden Road public meeting told me the ROW line on the Alden Road Map was drawn by the surveyors but that no one had yet checked the individual property owner’s plats and legal descriptions.

Comments were made on Post-It Notes during the rollout of the Fleming Road plans.

When the Fleming Road “clear zone” map was presented for Community Advisory Group (CAG) CAG#3, there was no legend for certain lines on the road that were identified when questioned as “estimated’ ROW. (And by the way, the Fleming Road surveyor’s contract, which has been billed and paid, called for “existing” ROW, not “estimated.”)

Now, the survey included with Fleming Road CAG#4 materials labels the same dashed line as “existing” ROW. What’s going on here?

It appears that, rather than confirm legal ROW by available proof, MCDOT simply claims ROW and requires the property owner to disprove it.

Conversations with residents near the Alden Road Bridge about their experiences indicate to me that is the case.

This amounts to an illegal taking if the homeowner is easily intimidated or does not have the resources and knowledge to adequately defend his property rights.

The simple fact is that if a property owner owns to the middle of the road and has not dedicated a ROW or granted MCDOT an easement, all MCDOT has is a prescriptive easement to the roadbed itself. A prescriptive easement gives MCDOT only the right to maintain the road as it currently is. It does not grant ROW. I am not sure MCDOT is working on the same premise.

Except to identify the “estimated” ROW line, Dave Block “deferred” my questions on ROW at the recent Fleming Rd. CAG#3.

Answers to several question, put to him at his invitation prior to the meeting also went unanswered, as has FRA’s year-long, repeated request for a cost/benefit analysis of rebuilding versus repaving, our request for a review of the definition of “exceptional trees”, our request for a review of design criteria, and other concerns that will be addressed by other speakers this morning.

CAG meetings feel like a one-way street.

If we were able to have meaningful discussions we might not be here today.

We do not feel we are being listened to or that our views are being considered.

A review of CAG #4 materials delivered to us by email on Friday fully supports our view that nothing has changed since the beginning.

And after being repeatedly assured for months that no design work was being done without our input, we suddenly have been presented with complex, detailed design options -that were designed in the last two weeks?

It is our observation that MCDOT and its engineering consultants are fixed on prescribed methods and standards that do not always fit the context of the project area and that they are unwilling to consider modifications to them.

Road building/maintenance in general needs to become more of a partnership between the taxpayers who foot the bill and the engineers employed by them to do the job.

We call upon you today to review the policies and procedures of the McHenry County Division of Transportation especially with respect to ROW determination, ROW acquisition, and communications with the taxpayers footing the bill.

Advice left by someone attending the first public hearing on widening and otherwise imrpvioving Fleming Road.

The following came in an email from The Land Conservancy of McHenry County.

From what little knowledge I have of Fleming Road, it is an extraordinary drive through the hills left by the retreating glacier.

Residents of the area fear that the McHenry County Board is planning to “improve” it enough to allow it to be an Eastern Bypass of Woodstock.

The Land Conservancy may offer an obstacle unforeseen by county officials.  Maybe not.  What do you read between the lines of the following part of the newsletter?

Here’s how the group explains what it is doing:

For 20 years, TLC has been working in McHenry County to provide individuals with an option for preserving their land that would not otherwise exist.

"Daffodils NOT Asphalt" the yard sign says.

From the first donated conservation easement on Alice & Leta Clark’s 5 acres at the corner of Thompson Road and Route 120, to the string of Natural Heritage Corridor easements along Fleming Road, The Land Conservancy of McHenry County has been helping individuals exercise some measure of control over the future with this powerful tool called the conservation easement.

Residents along Fleming Road turned to TLC for help maintaining the rural character of the corridor – forever.

And they chose to give up certain rights on a portion of the land they each own in order to preserve the character – as well as the hills and trees – of this unique resource.

The Fleming Road Legacy

"Scemic Route NOT Truck Route" is the message on another yard sign.

Of all the roadways in the county, Fleming Road, with its high concentration of remnant oak woodlands, a landscape that is rich with remnant glacial landforms, and its location in the Boone Creek Fen groundwater recharge area, is perhaps the most obvious example of a natural heritage corridor.

In September 2010, TLC’s board voted to allow The Land Conservancy to partner with municipalities and landowners to preserve those road corridors that pass through areas of the county that still retain high natural resource values-the Natural Heritage Corridor Program.

Fleming Road travels through one of the largest concentrations of remnant oak woodlands in McHenry County, and approximately 1½ miles of Fleming Road passes through the groundwater recharge area for the Boone Creek Fen Illinois Natural Area Inventory (INAI) site and Nature Preserve.

TLC holds several other conservation easements on and near the Fleming Road corridor, totaling 240 acres. To date, TLC has completed thirteen Natural Heritage Corridor easements with landowners along Fleming Road, and another 15 are still being negotiated. Thank you to all the Fleming Road easement donors for their commitment to preserving this shared resource.

With McHenry County government planning major changes on Alden and Fleming Roads, along with other road building, the McHenry County Environmental Defenders is promoting a workshop to teach citizens how to be dangerous. The invitation follows:

You’re invited to this workshop co-hosted by the Environmental Defenders.  Registration information is shown below.  Hope to see you there!

Understanding Transportation Funding and How to Have Effective Environmental Input into the Transportation Planning Process

A sign posted by the Fleming Road Alliance, some of whose members believe the County Board is planning to improve it to the extent that it will become an eastern by-pass of Woodstock.

DATE: Friday, February 18, 2011

TIME: 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

LOCATION: McHenry County College

FEE: $20 (includes lunch)

This workshop is brought to you by:

• The Delta Institute
• Environmental Defenders of McHenry County
• Land Conservancy of McHenry County
• Chicago Wilderness Society

This workshop is sponsored by Lou Marchi Total Recycling Institute.

What’s the Fleming Road Alliance up to?  Take a look below:

A sign posted this spring on Fleming Road.

From: Fleming Road Alliance <flemingroadalliance@gmail.com>
Subject: Fwd: Petition for Fleming Road
To: eberendt@yahoo.com

Date: Wednesday, October 20, 2010, 7:51 PM
Hello Fleming Road Alliance Members and Supporters,

Many of you have been asking what you can do to help. Well here it is!  Our County Board Members need to hear from us loud and clear that we do not want this project to destroy the beauty and country character of our road. We are hoping to get this petition out, signed and back in a very short time period by November 1st.  Send to PO Box 1021, Woodstock, Il 60098 or email to flemingroadalliance@gmail.com

There are hundreds of you on this emailing list.

Together, we should be able to pull together at least 2000 signatures. Print as many copies of the petition as you wish. Go talk to your neighbors, friends, classmates, church groups, etc. anyone in the county who appreciates a peaceful drive on a country road lined with old Oak trees and spring daffodils and understands that making changes to Fleming Road is a wasteful misuse of our tax dollars. If you can’t walk the petition, sign the petition yourself and send it in. Every signature counts!

Once we have enough signatures, we will present the petition at a County Board Meeting. We will let you know when because we need you all to come to that meeting in a show of support and unity.

If you have received the summaries of the Community Advisory Group meetings you know that MCDOT has still not clearly identified the “problems” and is still talking “to” us rather than “with” us. We are continually reminded that we are “advisory’ and if we can’t reach consensus, MCDOT will “move things along”. Department head, Joe Korpalski will not return our phone calls. It’s time to stand up and take back control from these bureaucrats!  Please help!

Fleming Road Alliance Organizing Committee
Lisa Rhoades

Mary Moltman
Ed Bennett
Marti Jadd
Linda Ramsey
Stanley Jarosz
Phyllis Keinz
Kevin Keesee

The petition can be found here.