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We have taken the plows off the trucks, the spreaders off the trucks, stored the salt and even stopped getting winter weather alerts. By the time you read this we will be heavy into the summer construction season. In fact, prior to the beginning of April we began installing storm drain on Old Barrington Road and will be moving throughout the villages and township roads during the summer.
We are confronted with yet another unfunded federal mandate which requires us by 2012 to inventory and maintain reflectivity records for every sign in the township. To that end, we are now the proud owners of a reflectometer and other necessary equipment to begin measuring existing signs and to begin the process of replacing them where necessary. It is my intent to be well ahead of the curve before the deadlines loom as the failure to meet the deadlines could affect our motor fuel tax revenue which we receive from the federal government on a monthly basis. We have elected, rather than to maintain typewritten lists and attempt to keep them current, to utilize a software program based on our Geographical Information System. This system will inventory not only all street signs both regulatory and informational, but also is capable of inventorying all of the storm drain we are putting in including manholes, inlets, culverts, catch basins and outfalls. Even pavement condition and tree inventory can be utilized. The program allows us to constantly update as to condition and to project useful life as scheduled replacement. This will allow for much better budgeting into the future and with decreasing tax revenues and increasing costs becomes even more of an asset to us. Much of the cost of this equipment and software was defrayed by a grant obtained through the efforts of State Representative Mark H. Beaubien.
Eventually, at some point in this year, the software will also offer a “web portal” which will enable a citizen to transmit a work order or a notice of a problem ranging from a pot hole, to a downed tree, to a branch to us via the internet and see the complaint posted on our geographical information system (GIS) and track the approval of the work request, its cost, how it was repaired and when as well as by who. This is a work in progress, but we hope to have it up and running this year.
Ms. Debra Broderick, a Lake Barrington and Cuba Township resident has joined our staff not only to manage our GIS efforts, with which she has previous experience, but also as our Intergovernmental Coordinator to work more closely with the villages and more particularly to Homeowner’s Associations throughout the township and the villages. If you are an officer of one of the many Homeowner’s Associations existing in our Township and Village partners, then we would like to hear from you to schedule a visit as one of our goals this year is to increase communication directly with Homeowner’s Associations to see how we can better serve your needs and be more active and proactive within your communities. Deb will be more than happy to attend your meetings, listen to your concerns and discuss ways we can improve your services. I, of course, am always happy to attend your meetings, enjoying hearing myself speak whenever possible. Please, do call us with your Homeowner’s Association meetings information and organizational information, as we are compiling our records now of these organizations and hope to serve you better through better communication skills. At your meetings, we are more than happy to discuss the GIS effort and show you the information that is available within your community from the system.
Someone asked me how the Road District began to serve the villages and when. The person was giving me credit for the Intergovernmental Agreements. I always believe in giving credit where credit is due and can take very little of the credit for this accomplishment. We live in an area, and probably the only area in the state, that has been able to put the true meaning of Intergovernmental Cooperation and Agreements to a practical use which has resulted in a winning situation for multiple units of local government and particularly for the tax payers. The real credit goes to my predecessor in office, Kermit D. Smiddy, State Representative Mark H. Beaubien who was the Supervisor of Cuba Township at the time the idea was originated and Becci Tonigan along with the mayor of the Village of Tower Lakes at the time Bill Fitzpatrick, and the mayor of Lake Barrington, Connie Schofield. This was way back when the Township was looking for a way to increase revenues and the Village of Tower Lakes was looking for a way to decrease the cost of using private contractors. The mayor of Tower Lakes, along with Mark Beaubien who was the Supervisor of Cuba Township approached Kermit Smiddy with the idea of the Road District taking over public works functions in the Village of Tower Lakes. Smiddy, in his typical can-do fashion, at the time seized on the idea and made it work. At that time, I was the township attorney and the only role I played was working with the Village attorney of Tower Lakes, Jim Bateman to create what we found to be a simple and basic agreement which has functioned as a blueprint for the agreements with all the other villages since that time. That was about 15 years ago. Shortly thereafter, the same group, Beaubien, Smiddy and Becci Tonigan went to the Village of Lake Barrington with the same idea. Jim Bateman and I modified the agreement somewhat because Lake Barrington was willing to purchase an additional truck that the Road District needed and Lake Barrington was added to the ever-growing group. Thereafter, North Barrington, Barrington Hills and then Deer Park joined us and it has continued to be a winning operation since. While I make it work, I take no credit for originating the idea.
We continue to strive to expand our duties and functions to our Village partners and are always interested in your input on how to make the system work better. Either contact your Village government or call me anytime with your ideas.
Mulch is back at the same delivered price of $50.00 per truck load. Early in the year we limit deliveries to no more than 2 to the same address due to the high volume of requests. It can always be picked up at our yard by you personally Monday through Friday between 7 and 3. We do not allow, under any circumstances, commercial contractors to pick up the mulch on your behalf and this includes “helpers” with their own trucks, landscapers or any other vehicle not registered to you. These rules are a necessity in order to insure a supply which is facing increasing demand on a yearly basis. Please remember that the mulch operations are incidental to our primary functions here at the Road District. We try to do our very best to maintain a supply for you, but the priorities of maintaining the Right-Of-Ways come first in every instance. I’m sure you understand. Firewood give-aways will resume in the fall. Just think- it’s only less than 180 days to snowplow season (as of the writing of this article).
Over the coming months, we are re-doing our website at www.cubaroads.com. It will be more interactive when finished and we will have our own blog up and operating. Please keep looking for changes.
Have a nice summer. |