Despite delays, mostly from strike, road work across McHenry County wraps up on time

With summer drawing to a close, several road projects across McHenry County are wrapping up, while others could see work continue until the last months of the year.

Road programs across county and state-controlled roads, along with Crystal Lake, McHenry and Woodstock, came in this year to the tune of millions and covered dozens of road miles.

Despite some delays, many of which stemmed from a strike carried out by International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 against three different material companies, many projects that were at risk of being stopped this year will cross the finish line by the end of summer.

For some, such as McHenry, which carried out the city’s largest road program to date, officials are putting final touch-ups on the work, Director of Public Works Troy Strange said.

“I would say we are 99% complete,” he said. “If we continue [this level of work] for the next couple of years, the results will be noticeable.”

The program’s total cost this year was $3.5 million, which came in under the $4.4 million allotted for the program, Strange said. The rest of the funds will be rolled over into next year’s program.

In total, nearly 40 roads in town saw work done this summer. Some of the busiest roads included Prairie Avenue, Willow Lane, Martin Road, Blake Boulevard and Kane Avenue.

Venice Avenue was one road that was cut from the program, Strange said. The plan for it shifted from resurfacing, which was supposed to take place this year, to a more in-depth rehabilitation. That project will eventually have pedestrian features added to it.

Crystal Lake was home to two large projects this summer, one of which was the resurfacing of Route 14 by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The second, which Crystal Lake oversaw, was work at the intersection of Route 176 and Main Street, Director of Public Works Michael Magnuson said.

Improvements included water main work, widening for turn lanes and a new traffic signal. With the project moving into its final phase, almost everything will be done by the end of September. The only hang-up is the new traffic signal because of supply chain issues.

In Woodstock, which, in addition to a nearly $15 million road program, is building a roundabout at Lake Avenue and Madison and Lake streets. It’s also host to a similar Route 14 resurfacing project being carried out by IDOT.

The road program this year touched 20 roads, including Dean Street and a few roads downtown. This year’s plans could go on until November and is mostly on track, City Engineer Chris Tiedt said.

Some delays caused by utility relocation slowed down some of the progress, he said.

Woodstock’s 2022 road program was the second one in a five-year plan that will see more than $50 million invested in the city’s roads. The work caused several businesses to worry not just about this year, but next year as well, when the city is expected to see work start on expanding Route 47.

The November deadline can be a tricky one, Tiedt said. Asphalt paving can take place only while the plants are open, and they usually shut down around Thanksgiving, depending on when winter starts.

If winter were to come early, some of the work may be put aside until spring, Tiedt said.

Meanwhile, the roundabout work in the downtown area, which is slated to continue until early December, is going well, Tiedt said. Construction of the physical roundabout is beginning.

McHenry County, which totaled nearly $13 million in road work, is wrapping up work on some of its largest projects but still has some work left to do on West Algonquin Road, which is expected to wrap up in October, division of transportation spokesperson Chris Grask said.

The bulk of the county’s road program saw work done on Algonquin Road from Cedar Ridge Drive to Meyer Drive, and Randall Road from County Line Road to Harnish Drive.

Improvements at certain intersections along Algonquin Road, much of which is still ongoing, is the second part of this year’s program, Grask said. That part of the program could go into next year since the county opted to prioritize road work. Work includes installing flashing signals, crosswalk improvements and traffic signals.

Work on South Randall Road was completed about a month ago with some clean-up left to do, Grask said. The east side of Algonquin Road is in the same condition.

The IDOT projects that include resurfacing work along Route 14 in Woodstock and Crystal Lake will finish up in the coming months, IDOT spokesperson Maria Castaneda said.

In Woodstock, the work includes a nearly six-mile stretch of road, running west of Route 47. That project is broken up into three sections, with the western most section completed, Castaneda said. The middle portion is being worked on currently, with the eastern portion, which runs up to Route 47, starting shortly. The project is expected to be done in October.

In Crystal Lake, the resurfacing of Route 14 is expected to wrap up in November, Castaneda said. That work includes ramps and replacing deteriorated curbs.

“If mother nature is nice and cooperates, we’ll be good,” Castaneda said.

One problem that came up for each of the municipalities was a strike carried out by Local 150, which in some cases threatened to delay road projects until 2023. The strike halted work across 30 quarries in northern Illinois that produced aggregate materials like sand, gravel and stone.

The strike began over what the union described as unfair labor practices. Beginning on June 7, the strike continued until late July.

In Crystal Lake, the city paused its road resurfacing program in mid June because of the strike and lost about a month, Magnuson said. In Woodstock, the strike slowed down IDOT’s Route 14 resurfacing project, Tiedt said. McHenry, meanwhile, saw it resolved before any issues arose.

“It was resolved just in time to get everything wrapped up right before school started, so that was convenient,” Strange said. “Had it lasted another week, it might have created conflicts.”