Politics & Government

Village Talks Tax Levy, Route 53 Extension

Grayslake trustees authorized preparation of the 2012 tax levy ordinance, seeking a levy of $3 million. The board also reviewed design plan parameters for the proposed Route 53 extension.

The  is proposing a $3,002,099 million tax levy for 2011, a 2.22 percent increase over last year’s amount.

The levy ordinance, to be adopted by the Village Board next month, will result in property tax receipts for the village in 2012.

Assistant Village Manager Derek Soderholm said the village actually anticipates collecting $2,927,099 million next year. The additional $75,000, he said, is to capture property tax generated from new construction.

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“This extra $75,000 is not anticipated to be fully collected and does not affect property taxpayers that did not make new construction improvements; for example, taking vacant land and adding a building.”

The village portion of a resident’s property tax bill is typically between 4 percent and 5 percent. Since 1987, the village’s property tax rate has declined 51 percent.

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The proposed levy falls under the guidelines of the tax cap law, which allows for inflationary adjustments, said Soderholm.

“This next year’s adjustment will be 1.5 percent inflation, which equates to about an average of $5 per household, depending on a number of factors.”

Soderholm added that households participating in the village’s electric aggregation program “will largely offset their property taxes paid to the village over the next two years with the savings from the aggregation program, about $285 per year on average.”

Route 53 Still Discussed

In other board news, trustees discussed design parameters for the proposed Route 53 extension during the Nov. 15 committee-of-the-whole meeting.

The long-proposed, $1 billion-plus project would extend Route 53 from Lake Cook Road to Route 120 near Grayslake, relieving traffic congestion on the I-94 tollway and other major roads.

Grayslake’s input will be forwarded to the Illinois Tollway’s Route 53/120 Blue Ribbon Advisory Council, established earlier this year to develop a regional consensus on whether the Illinois Tollway should move forward.

A nonbinding referendum in favor of the Route 53 extension was passed by Lake County voters in April 2009.

If the extension is built, the would host the largest portion of the project. Because of this, the village has a strong desire to ensure high design quality and environmental standards that minimize adverse impacts to the local community, said village officials.

In its report, the village urges the council to consider certain operational objectives beyond congestion relief, such as economic development and mass transit.

“Central Lake County will be a major economic development hub for the region. Over 1300 acres is available in Grayslake and along the Route 53 corridor for business development. The chosen road configuration should support economic development in this area.”

Because the Grayslake area hosts four Metra train stations providing service on two separate commuter lines, the village feels future consideration should be given to the inclusion of a mass transit capability that allows access to the large economic development area from Route 53/120 and between the existing commuter stations and business development.

The village’s report also calls for the lowest possible road elevations through the project’s Grayslake portion; decorative sound walls as needed; screening for noise, road signs and lighting; pedestrian facilities and recreation; underpasses and pedestrian bridges to preserve corridors; and access to wetland restoration areas.

Additionally, the village wants limited access points related to Peterson Road, Alleghany Road, Route 45 and Atkinson Road; emergency road access at Harris Road; and an Atkinson Road/Route 83 alignment.

The village also wants sewer extensions preserved and wetland protection, particularly east of Route 45.

 


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