An email the Feen Hill team sent out this afternoon.
Update on Plans to Mitigate Traffic Concerns
To the Old Town community,
We hope this update finds you well as you enjoy the final days of summer and prepare for the fall. Over the past three years, we have been so grateful for the time and energy you’ve invested in shaping our proposal to revitalize and reimagine parts of the North and LaSalle Corridor. As we continue our community engagement process, we are pleased to provide an update on our plans to address one of the main concerns we’ve heard from neighbors and residents – traffic.
Traffic and congestion have always been top of mind for us, and we have remained committed to ensuring our proposal does not negatively impact traffic patterns in the neighborhood. That’s why we recruited one of the country's leading traffic engineering firms, Kenig, Lindgren, O’Hara, Aboona, Inc. (KLOA, Inc.), to develop a comprehensive traffic improvement plan based on an independent traffic study of the area.
Today, we are pleased to share our findings and important details of our plan to mitigate traffic concerns. This unprecedented investment includes a commitment to:
-Demolishing both the Shell and BP Gas Stations
-Eliminating 12 existing curb cuts along the North and LaSalle Corridor
-Removing all current North Ave obstructions including the Walgreens trash and loading dock
-Installing 18 curb bump outs along the North and LaSalle Corridor across 5 separate intersections
-Creating a new Wells Street Divvy Bike station south of North Avenue
-Installing a dedicated lead/protected right turn lane from LaSalle to North to reduce queuing time
-Updating major intersections (North and LaSalle + North and Wells) with:
-New bump outs to each intersection corner
-Bike lane striping
-Re-optimized signal timings (to increase coordination between intersections)
-New bus striping
-Dedicated and signalized right turn only lanes
Widened sidewalks (to increase consistency on LaSalle)
New fisheye camera system with cellular modem
Reducing pedestrian crossing times across 5 intersections and 18 unique pedestrian walkways
Increasing vehicular turning and throughput capacity
Consolidating loading zones to utilize a very large, dedicated off-street loading area
When implemented, the above traffic investments will result in statistically verified reductions to traffic as a direct result of our project, which are currently under review and verification by the Department of Transportation including:
30-35% reduction to southbound right turn delays from LaSalle to North
25-30% reduction in eastbound left-turn delays from North to LaSalle
25% reduction to Pedestrian Crossing Distances at North and LaSalle
36% reduction to Pedestrian Crossing Distances at North and Wells
15-20% reduction to westbound queues on North Avenue
As we enter this next phase of the project, it's important to demonstrate the strong support that exists within the community. After years of collaboration with residents, stakeholders and neighbors, we have developed a proposal to improve car traffic while protecting pedestrians and encouraging use of public transit; reduce crime and increase safety; boost economic development in the neighborhood by investing in vacant surface parking lots; fill retail vacancies; support local small businesses; and create socially and economically inclusive housing opportunities for all Chicagoans at both market and affordable rate.
If you believe in our vision and the positive impact of our proposal, we encourage you to share your support and help us move forward together.
If you have any questions or additional feedback you would like to share, please visit our feedback tab or email us directly at
oldtown@fernhillcompany.com
Thank you,
Nick Anderson and the Fern Hill Team
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