Manhattan Transfer Complete, Eastern Ave. Now Open

(Photo by Stephanie Irvine)
(Photo by Stephanie Irvine)

This had been a familiar sight at Eastern and Baker as Village of Manhattan officials waited for approval of a land transfer to allow two of the stop signs now in Manhattan Township. That approval came January 24. (Photo by Stephanie Irvine)

By Stephanie Irvine

Eastern Avenue is now open.

Construction on the highly anticipated third thoroughfare between Manhattan and New Lenox was completed in November 2023, but the new road had remained closed until early Wednesday, Jan. 24, after official approval from the state on a land transfer for two stop signs delayed its opening.

The completed-but-closed road had drawn ire and confusion online from Manhattan residents wondering what the hold-up has been; those growing impatient wanting to use the new road.

The Original Plan

The Eastern Avenue extension had been long discussed as a needed North-South connection.

Village officials approved a plan to create the new road, and construction bidding for the job was read on April 26, 2023. The construction bid was awarded to P.T. Ferro for just under $1.3 million, with a construction deadline of Nov. 30, 2023.

Construction of the one-mile stretch of road between Smith Road and Baker Road concluded ahead of schedule in the fall of 2023.

“The original plan was just a two-way (stop), because we didn’t have (jurisdiction of) the west side of Baker,” said Manhattan Mayor Mike Adrieansen.

With construction complete, the Village of Manhattan announced on November 14 they would hold the following week a walk/bike/run event to celebrate.

The celebration was originally supposed to include a ribbon cutting, but took place without one on Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023, the day before Thanksgiving.

That’s because at the Nov. 21, 2023, board meeting, the village board decided opening Eastern with just a two-way stop would potentially create an unsafe intersection.

Instead, they favored delaying its official opening, leaving the paved, striped road untouched by vehicular traffic until a four-way stop could be installed.

The thought process among the members of the Village board was that getting the jurisdictional transfer required to add the additional stop signs would’ve only taken a couple more weeks.

“It’s just being proactive,” said Adrieansen of postponing the official opening of the road. “The road had been closed for so long. We felt it was better to have it all done at the same time.

“We had kept the grand opening (in November) because it was a nice day, and people really wanted to do it. The kids were off school. So, we left the ribbon-cutting out of it because it was not officially open,” Adrieansen explained as to why they moved forward with the celebration.

The decision to keep the road closed until a four-way stop could be installed was made out of an abundance of caution and with safety in mind, according to Village of Manhattan officials. This way, drivers would not be confused by a stopping pattern change so soon after opening the road.

“We advertised it as a four-way. We just wanted that (four-way stop) since it’s been closed so long. It should be any day now,” Adrieansen explained.

The Road to a Four-Way Stop

The initial projection of taking just a couple more weeks for the transfer turned into months. If a governing body, like a village, wants to install a stop sign, they have to have jurisdiction over the roads at the intersection where the stop signs would be.

The Village of Manhattan did not have jurisdiction over all four corners at Baker and Eastern; Manhattan Township had authority over part of Baker Road.

“In the first discussions about opening it, we had a lot of unknowns if we would be able to get the jurisdictional transfer,” explained Adrieansen about why they originally considered opening the road with just a two-way stop.

“That road has been a challenge all along, because there are 4-5 pipelines to get approval to go over. The initial conversation was not very promising that we would legally be able to get the transfer for just the small section of the road,” said Adrieansen.

The board decided that a jurisdictional transfer would be the best route, and contacted the Manhattan Township Road Commissioner, Jim “JB” Baltas, who signed off on the township’s behalf, approving the transfer of the section of road the Village needed.

The process would not have been faster or simpler to have the township install the stop signs, Baltas said. If the township requested the stop signs instead, they would have had to select and pay an engineering firm to conduct a traffic study.

The results would have to be analyzed before a recommendation would be made, which also wouldn’t be guaranteed to be a four-way stop recommendation. And all of this would be an expense of the township, and ultimately, taxpayers.

Going rogue and not waiting for official IDOT approval, as some residents have suggested, would have set up the township for liability, Baltas said.

“If it was an illegal posting of a sign (without a study), then the township would’ve been going to court if, God forbid, there was an accident. I have to protect the township. There are rules and laws that the township has to follow,” Baltas said.

So, they opted for the jurisdictional transfer.

At the Nov. 21, 2023, board meeting, the village approved the ordinance transferring 0.41 miles of Baker Road from the jurisdiction of Manhattan Township to the Village of Manhattan. Then, it would be submitted to the Illinois Department of Transportation for approval.

Having jurisdiction of that smidge of road gives the Village of Manhattan legislative authority to install already-approved stop signs at the newly minted intersection, which the village wanted to have in place before opening the road.

The village had voted and approved the four stop signs at Baker and Eastern at the Nov. 21, 2023, meeting, in advance of IDOT’s approval, to expedite the process.

But it didn’t. What was thought to take only a few weeks for IDOT approval turned out to be nine.

The Big Delay

As the Village of Manhattan waited for IDOT’s formal approval of the jurisdictional transfer, they watched post after post questioning the process on community Facebook groups. The Mayor even made Eastern Avenue a topic for discussion on his podcast.

To expedite the process, Village Administrator Nick Palmer said they drove the transfer papers up to IDOT’s district office in Schaumburg and placed them on the desk of the person responsible.

Asked by Farmers Weekly Review about the delay, an IDOT spokeswoman responded on January 17.

“The district has received the signed documents by both the village and township,” confirmed Maria Castenada, IDOT’s Public Information Officer

“After the district completes its review, the documents are sent to the central office in Springfield for final review and approval,” Castenada continued.

“Once approved notification notices will be sent out. Typically, the process takes a few weeks to complete. However, it can take more time if additional information/documents are needed. If no additional information/documents are needed, the process is anticipated to be completed in the next couple of weeks.”

The Village of Manhattan had made several more attempts while waiting for the road to open to move things along, and village meeting minutes reflect that the village’s engineer contacted IDOT several times to check the status of the paperwork.

The New Road Opens!

The following morning after Farmers Weekly Review published this article online about the delay of the road, the Village of Manhattan received the official paperwork from IDOT that approved the jurisdictional transfer.

“We would like to thank everyone for their patience while we worked through the process to get the jurisdictional transfer. This is a good addition for our community,” said Adrieansen of the opening.

On the Mayor’s Facebook page, an official statement also acknowledged the memes, noting that they both appreciated and enjoyed them. He also thanked Manhattan Township and specifically Baltas.

Within two hours of receiving the official approval from IDOT, the Village of Manhattan had the stop signs installed, the new road cleared of ice and snow, and barriers down, ready for traffic.

Eastern Avenue, Past and Future

Old-timers will likely remember when Eastern Avenue, also colloquially known as “Mud Road” or other variations due to the unpaved road’s often poor condition, was a precarious albeit viable option for travel. The mile-long stretch of road was closed permanently sometime in the early 2000s until its recent repaving and eventual reopening.

The Manhattan Township Historical Society advised that “mud road” was more of an “access road to the back of farm properties, and a local shortcut available to those who felt like an adventure.”

The Village decided to pave and reopen Eastern Avenue in 2023 after a boom in new construction expanded the village’s population and resulted in an increase in traffic accidents on Cedar and Route 52.

The opening of Eastern Avenue is anticipated to alleviate traffic while providing another option to access New Lenox and specifically Lincoln-Way West High School, which is the high school that serves Manhattan.

Previously, Manhattan residents could head north from town only by using Cedar Road or Route 52.

With the long delay behind them, the Village wanted to open the road as soon as possible after receiving the official paperwork. When asked if they would follow through with a ribbon-cutting ceremony they originally intended to have, the mayor said they would likely not hold one.

Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.

Correction: It was inaccurately reported that the Village painfully watched the memes being posted. The article has been updated to reflect that they appreciated and enjoyed them.

 

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