McHenry County Blog

Former McHenry County Highway Commissioner Jim Rakow passed away Friday. When he came to McHenry County one of his big goals was to link Randall Road to Route 31.

Before he left office, there was such a link was planned that the McHenry County Board named in his honor–James R. Rakow Road.

He was married to McHenry County Recorder of Deeds Phyllis Walters.

Visitation will be from 2-8 PM at Crystal Lake’s Davenport Family Funeral Home on Monday, December 13th. The funeral service will be at 11 AM Tuesday, December 14th at the same location.

His obituary appears below:

James R. Rakow, (pronounced Rayco) 81, of Algonquin was born on December 15, 1928 in Elgin, Illinois to Waldemar Alvin and Jeanette (Taylor) Rakow. He passed away peacefully, December 10, 2010, at the Valley High Nursing Home in Woodstock surrounded by his loving family.

From the time he was eleven years old, he worked with his father Waldemar Rakow in the surveying business surveying roads in Kane, McHenry and Lake Counties.

In 1949, he graduated from Elgin High School and continued his education at Bradley University, graduating with a degree in Engineering.

During the Korean War, he proudly served his country as a member of US Navy aboard the USS Cunningham. He graduated from Officer Candidate School in 1953 with the rank of Lieutenant JG and was honorably discharged from the US Naval Reserve in 1967 as a Lieutenant.

For more than 15 years, he was a partner with his father in WA Rakow Engineering & Surveying in Elgin.

He worked for Baxter Woodmand in Crystal Lake prior to becoming McHenry County Superintendent of Roads/Engineer; he served the county for over 24 years in that capacity.

Mr. Rakow put in more than 11 years of legwork and played a vital role in procuring the right of way for the road connecting IL Rt 31 with Randall Road, completed after he left his position. His work was so appreciated that this road, James R. Rakow Road, was named in his honor.

Overseeing and planning the replacement of Pearl Street Bridge in McHenry, Rawson Road Bridge, and many county bridges which included widening of pavement and shoulders.

He was also instrumental in the building of the Charles Miller Bridge in McHenry, beginning with purchasing the land through engineering the roads east and west of the new bridge.

James was actively involved with local, township & county agencies in development, expansion and improvement of roads, including Randall Road north/south corridor, Algonquin Road widening, and Northern Algonquin Bypass (now known as the Western Algonquin Bypass). He was responsible for construction and maintenance of over 200 miles of county roads.

He worked diligently to reconfigure the Township Highway Commissioner operations; he promoted and aided in the development of current McHenry County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances, laid the groundwork for McHenry County Stormwater Ordinance, and upgraded the Highway Department to meet demands of 21st century.

He served as an advisor to and board member of CATS (Chicago Area Transit System) and was actively involved with numerous area engineering associations and societies.

From 1993 to 2005, Mr. Rakow worked for the SEC Group, Inc. in McHenry; using his professionalism to help it grow to the large firm it is today, producing quality work.

Known for his belly shaking laughs and sly sense of humor, “JR” became a true personality at SEC and will always be remembered as a valued friend, good natured, gentleman, and a true professional. “We at SEC owe him much and plan on dedicating a part of our business to him.”

In his earlier years, he was very active with the Elgin YMCA. He enjoyed playing racquetball, handball and golf, as well as boating, crossword puzzles, the Chicago Bears, and the Chicago Cubs. He and Phyllis loved to travel and vacation in the British Virgin Islands on various sailing vessels.

A man of integrity, James was an honest, intelligent, kind, caring and thoughtful person; he was always the epitome of a true gentleman and will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

He is survived by his best friend and loving wife, Phyllis K. Walters; his loving children Diane (Charles) Griffin, Ansley Webster, Andrea Walters, and Anthony (Sheri) Walters; his cherished grandchildren Luke, Jessica and Rebecca Grossman, Jennifer (Michael) Tramantana, April Molenda, Laurin Adeniran, Abigail Lindahl, and Ashley, Benjamin and Cole Walters; two treasured great grandchildren, Len Molenda-Nichols and Destiny Molenda-Nichols; and his sister Ruth Ann Rakow Crandall and a brother-in-law, Chris Kobel and a sister-in-law, Marie Holtz.

Preceding him in death were his parents; his stepmother, Lois Rakow Graning, his son, Steven Rakow, and his grandson, Alex Grossman.

Visitation will be held on Monday from 2-8 p.m. at Davenport Family Funeral Home, 419 E. Terra Cotta Ave., (Rte. 176) Crystal Lake. The visitation will continue on Tuesday from 10 a.m. until the time of the services at 11 a.m. at the funeral home. Interment with military honors will follow at the Algonquin Cemetery.

Memorials in Mr. Rakow’s name may be made to Valley Hi Nursing Home, 2406 Hartland Rd, Woodstock IL 60098, 815-338-0312 or Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, 1359 Broadway, Ste 1509, New York, NY 10018, 800-457-6676.

Corridors identified are · Keystone Road Corridor · FAP 420 Corridor · Solon Mills Corridor · Railroad Corridor · Couplet Corridor · Near East Corridor · Far East Corridor. The choices seem to have narrowed to the FAP 420 and Railroad Corridors.

Over 40 years ago I noticed a lot–hundreds of acres–of land changing hands west of Richmond. I was McHenry County Treasurer and my office changed the addresses on the Address-o-Graph plates. We got the deed transfers which had the new addresses to which the tax bills should be sent.  All the deeds went to secret land trusts.

Rumor was that Arlington Park Racetrack owner Marge Everett was buying up land for a new racetrack. It would be where not-yet-built roads would converge between Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago.

Four-land highways in Wisconsin make it pretty easy to get to Richmond. When we go to Milwaukee, we take Interstate 43.

Wisconsin built roads that went—just coincidentally, of course—to Richmond.

And, in Illinois the Illinois Department of Transportation bought the land to build a four-lane highway to Richmond. No money to build the highway, of course.

The desire was so great from the people who want to turn McHenry County into DuPage County that McHenry County Republican Party Chairman Al Jourdan got the highway (FAP 420) included in the list of highways to be taken over by the Illinois Tollway in the late 1990′s.

None of us representing McHenry County in the Illinois House knew anything about the effort. All of us voted against the proposal, as did State Senator Dick Klemm.  The result is that the highway is on the Tollway to-do list, but not very high up.

I find it interesting that the Richmond web site has IDOT as one of the cooperating agencies. One would think it would have gotten the message that this was Tollway business.

In any event, Wednesday, April 28, 2010 at Memorial Hall, 10308 Main St Richmond, 3:00 PM – 7:00 PM, the plan will be presented to the public.

You can find this title page on the internet at the Richmond Bypass web site.

No formal presentation, but I would imagine that engineers will be present to answer questions.

Here’s the background information on the Richmond Bypass web site, which is very much a work in progress, not even having an easy to find map yet under the “map” button.

Page 1 of mailing recently sent to Richmond residents. Click to enlarge.

US 12 is a part of a regional transportation route that connects suburban northeastern Illinois with travel destinations in southern Wisconsin.

Over three decades ago IDOT, recognizing roadway capacity deficiencies of US 12 and regional transportation needs, purchased significant portions of the right-of-way from the Wisconsin state line south and east to Lake County.

It is now designated as FAP 420. In 1999, traffic volumes on US 12 through Richmond prompted a study to widen the existing two-lane roadway to three lanes. Given the physical constraints of the existing right-of-way and short term nature of that option, it was determined that another solution was needed.

Page 2 of recent mailing. Click to enlarge.

The strong preference throughout Richmond was for a Richmond Bypass that would address existing system capacity demands, local transportation needs, regional travel patterns and system linkages. At the same time, it was determined to be extremely important to include efforts to preserve the economic vitality of the downtown area and promote Richmond as a visitor destination.

Here’s more history and a pitch for the project:

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) acquired right of way for a future north-south expressway west of Richmond in the 1960s.

The future expressway was planned to be an extension of IL 53. The future roadway plans also included an east-west expressway from Richmond to Waukegan.

The north-south expressway west of Richmond was planned to intersect with US 12 in Wisconsin.

In the 1970s, Wisconsin upgraded US 12 to a 4-lane divided expressway – essentially their portion of the planned north-south expressway improvement.

This north-south corridor was identified in the first Chicago area regional transportation plan in 1962.

Although the entire length of right of way was not purchased, IDOT did purchase a portion of the corridor west of Richmond between Glacial Park and the Wisconsin state line. [Originally FAP 420 right of-way ran through the McHenry County Conservation District, but the legislative delegation convinced IDOT to move it away from the kames.]

In 1999, IDOT evaluated widening US 12 to a 3-lane roadway (one through lane in each direction separated by a two-way left turn lane) from the intersection of IL 31 to the Wisconsin state line. Due to concerns raised by the community and local officials, the widening plans were rejected.

To provide limited congestion relief, improvements to the US 12 intersections at Tryon Grove Road and IL 31 were studied and implemented.

In August 2002, the Village of Richmond and the Urban Land Institute hosted a two day panel discussion regarding future land development in the context of a new bypass. The panel acknowledged the need for a bypass to alleviate traffic congestion. Concerns were raised about the long-term economic stability of the downtown area and the potential impacts to farmlands and environmentally sensitive areas associated with the bypass.

Residents and local officials supported completion of an engineering study to evaluate a bypass and its potential benefits and impacts. An important goal of the study was to identify alternative alignments that balance the anticipated rapid growth of Richmond against the need to accommodate existing, interim, and design year traffic.

In 2003, the Village of Richmond, McHenry County and IDOT conducted the US 12 Bypass Feasibility Study, which included extensive public input. The majority of local residents favored a bypass to reduce congestion and delays, remove through truck traffic from downtown, and preserve the historic downtown area.

The study concluded in 2007 with a recommendation for a bypass to the west of Richmond, along the route FAP 420 for much of its length.

Purpose of the Improvement

Map sent to Richmond residents along with letter of invitation to the presentation. Click to enlarge.

The purpose of this project is improve the operation of north-south traffic along US 12 from the intersection with IL 31, through the town of Richmond, and north to the Wisconsin state line and preserve the small town character of Richmond, including downtown pedestrian accessibility, and supporting the area’s economic development initiatives and land use plans.

The 3.5-mile section of US 12 covered by this study is located in northern McHenry County. The study termini are logical from a roadway network and traffic operations standpoint because the southern terminus is at IL 31, a major at-grade intersection with US 12 that accommodates high turning volumes, and the northern terminus is at the state line, beyond which US 12 is a 4-lane divided highway.

The benefits provided by the proposed action can be achieved without any requirements for additional roadway improvements elsewhere within the study area.

Need for the Improvement

System Linkage and Continuity

US 12 is a vital link in the overall regional transportation system.  Richmond is relatively far from the Interstate highway network.  McHenry County has only 8.5 miles of interstate highway (I-90) located in the southwestern corner of the county. However, IDOT has designated 9 routes within McHenry County as Strategic Regional Arterials, which serve as the backbone of the county’s roadway system. Therefore, motorists rely heavily on these arterials which include US 12, IL 31, and IL 173 in the vicinity of Richmond.

US 12 is a primary corridor for commercial traffic originating in northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin, and for vacationers from the Chicago area en route to destinations in Wisconsin.  US 12 also serves commuter traffic in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

Historically, US 12 served long distance trips between Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin and beyond.  These longer-distance trips are now served by the interstate system. The majority of US 12 within in the project area consists of 2 lanes, but widens at intersections to accommodate separate turn lanes.

In Lake County, about 6.5 miles southeast of Richmond, US 12 consists of 4 lanes with more restriction on direct access to the roadway. From this point south though Lake County, US 12 remains 4 lanes or wider.  North of the Wisconsin state line, US 12 is a 4-lane divided highway.

McHenry County Republican Party Chairman (and State Rep.) Mike Tryon formed a political action committee separate from the Central Committee.

I thought you might find the contributors and expenditures of interest. They are included in the PAC’s campaign disclosure filing this month.

The price to join the group of inside advisors seems to be $500, although more seems to be welcome.

Here are the contributors:

• Algonquin Township Highway Commisisoner Bob Miller’s PAC – $500
• State Rep. Mark Beaubien’s PAC – $500
• Alliance Contractors Inc – $1,000
• Robert Boncosky – $500
• Randy Donley – $395.20
• Blake Hobson – a $500
• Howard Green Company, Cedar Rapids, IA (John Smith’s Smith Engineering was acquired by HR Green) – $500
• Human Resource Techniques Inc, Algonquin Karla Dobbeck is its president) – $500
• Innovative Component Sales Inc, Huntley (Mike Skala is its president) – $2,500
• Kathleen Kuchta – $500
• Donald Lewis – $500
• Madsen Sugden and Gottemoller – $500
• Marc Munaretto – $500
• Gary Overbay – $500
• Tom Zanck – $500

About $3,500 of the money raised has been spent on “Roundtable Breakfast Meetings” at Crystal Lake’s 1776 restaurant and Richard Walkers Pancake House. I’ve been told candidates were “vetted” at some such meetings.

Richard Walkers Pancake House

• 8/12/2009
• 8/12/2009
• 9/15/2009
• 10/23/2009

1776

• 8/30/2009
• 9/8/2009
• 9/14/2009
• 10/12/2009
• 10/23/2009
• 12/2/2009
• 12/9/2009

In addition utilities have been paid at the campaign office and a camcorder purchased for the Young Republicans.

The fund has $11,800 in the bank.