Local economic boon with CKC route?

DIXON – Dixon Mayor Jim Burke hopes a new route that passes through town will mean a big boost to local tourism across the Sauk Valley.

The 532-mile Chicago-Kansas City Expressway was decreed by Illinois state legislation in May. It urges travel from Chicago to Kansas City via I-290 in Chicago, along Interstate 88 west to the Quad Cities, south on I-74 to Galesburg, then down through Monmouth, Macomb and Quincy before heading across the Mississippi River into Missouri. Within the state, it is referred to as Illinois Highway 110.

For Burke, an increase in traffic would mean “more manufacturers and warehouse distribution companies that would set up along the CKC corridor.”

“That would be the ideal situation right off the bat,” he said. “That means providing more jobs for people along the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway.”

A simple increase in traffic along I-88 would mean “economic development for communities along here,” he said.

“It means that there is going to be more people getting off at the Dixon interchange,” Burke added. “It means that they are going to be spending money, and when they get off and they spend money, it means that there will be probably more businesses that will locate along our interchange business district out here.”

Glen Kuhlemier, Rock Falls 2nd Ward alderman, agrees.
"Anything that brings more commercial traffic to route 88 can be beneficial to us in many ways," he said. "... in the tourism side, people would get off and stay in hotels and go to restaurants."

The possible influx of money would “give us a little extra strength,” he said.

Sterling sees benefits, too, City Manager Scott Shumard said.

“Jobs are following commerce, and commerce is consolidating around major metropolitan centers and centers of education,” Shumard wrote in an e-mail. “Anything we can do to attach ourselves to a corridor between metropolitan centers, we position ourselves for logistical jobs and development.

“The designation is primarily for marketing purposes as our physical position in transportation from Chicago to Kansas City has not improved,” he wrote.

The major proponent for the creation of the four-lane highway is Tom Oakley, former publisher of the Quincy Herald-Whig newspaper and member of the Tri-State Development Summit transportation committee. The economic organization aims to bring together leaders from 35 counties in Illinois, Missouri and Iowa.

“In the middle of our region, there wasn’t a four-lane highway within 100 miles,” Oakley said Tuesday. “All of a sudden, we become the center of a major transportation network. More businesses along the corridor find themselves in a better place to serve the market.”

Historically, “transportation and highways produce economic development,” he said. “Economic development follows the building of highways. This is another piece of the big transportation picture.

“The ultimate economic development for communities along the corridor is there,” Oakley said.

To help make his hopes of an economic boon a reality, Burke has outlined a series of steps he would like to local officials to follow. First, he wants to identify economic development assets along the route, industrial sites and every airport.

Then, he calls for “bringing together the economic development people and get their input as far as what the assets are.”

One of the challenges will be persuading motorists to use the new route instead of relying on Stevenson Expressway (Interstate Highway 55) in Chicago and Interstate Highway 70 from St. Louis to Kansas City.

“What do we have that can really make this attractive to manufacturers, to distribution people, to trucking companies on why they should use this corridor?” Burke said.

Oakley suggested that the new route is “a different route without having to use clogged arteries.”

“We have said to trucking companies, made them aware, this is far more efficient than current routes they may be taking,” he said.

In addition, Kansas City is a “thriving community,” Burke said.

“There are a lot of medical bases there,” he said. “It’s really got a lot of vitality in that whole Kansas City area.”

Burke said that “all three of us mayors [Amy Viering in Sterling and David Blanton in Rock Falls] recognize the potential for economic development with this.”

Burke is calling for the formation of a CKC Expressway Association to examine the next steps and put a plan of action together.

“My hope would be that out of that meeting would come a decision to have another meeting and invite all of the stakeholders,” Burke said.

“I’d like to see at some point here, how do Chicago economic development people feel about this? How do the Kansas City economic development people feel about this? Do they want to be part of this?”

Oakley, like Burke, wants communities along the corridor to work together to promote the greatest level of economic development.

“We have to figure out how we can bring together communities on this highway,” Oakley said, “so they can jointly work together to promote themselves and the transportation as a result of this highway.”