After Quincy rejects roundabout project, Adams County prepares to turn over jurisdiction of 48th, State

Both County Board Chairman Kent Snider and County Engineer Jim Frankenhoff argued the work would  have improved the safety of pedestrian and bike traffic, reduced traffic waiting times and lowered the risk of crashes caused by drivers unable to see traffic over the hill at the east leg of the junction.

After said council vote, Snider promised the county would offload the intersection in question under a 1973 intergovernmental agreement permitting the county to do so at will once Quincy’s city boundaries exceed 50% of the roadway. 

Staff advised County Board members the county is not required to pay the city any compensation or otherwise indulge the city’s reluctance to take over maintenance of the intersection, which city staff estimated is due for at least $1 million in maintenance in the short term.

In previous Transportation, Building and Technology Committee meetings, Frankenhoff told county officials the county has the backing of the Illinois Department of Transportation in the transfer.

“The Highway Department and city offices were aware of this (agreement) in 2011 or 2012,” Frankenhoff told the County Board. “The roundabout project started in 2014. We talked to the city about it for many years. Each time they’ve put a hurdle in front of the Highway Department and each time we’ve come over that hurdle, but it’s at a point where we have had enough.”

Board members voted in favor of the measure 18-1 with County Board member Travis Cooley, R-4, dissenting. County Board members Keith Callaway, R-1, and Brent Fischer, R-7, were absent.

The county purchased $200,000 of right-of-way throughout negotiations with the city. The land will become public domain with the transfer.

In other business Finance Committee Chairman Bret Austin, R-1, informed board members of four options for the proposed HVAC system replacement at the Adams County Courthouse.

This includes taking out a loan from a local bank, entering a lease-to-own arrangement with the company that sells the equipment, using cash reserves to make a down payment on bonds to lower interest rates or selling bonds for the entire project.

On April 2, Thomas Buchheit, a project consultant from RTM Engineering, told the board an HVAC replacement would cost $8 million to $9 million, although he admitted to artificially inflating his estimate to avoid undershooting expenses.

“As long as our rating for bonds stays good, our most likely avenue is to bond the whole thing and keep cash in hand in case something else comes up,” Austin said after the board meeting. “Over a 10 to 15-year term, the expense with bonds will likely come out to about $12 million. Personally, (I don’t support a sales tax increase to pay for this); I think our constituents are worn out on sales-tax-related measures. Unlike the jail, which was a huge capital expenditure as a whole new building, this is just repairs and maintenance.”

In other news, the County Board:

• Approved a transfer of $50,000 to the coroner's office for forensic equipment.
• Accepted a $150,000 grant to purchase supplies for the Adams County Emergency Management Agency for use in the event of a mass casualty event.
• Heard the county’s self-funded health insurance is running 10% below its budgeted expenses.
• Heard a public hearing for a proposed industrial solar power plant near Marblehead is scheduled for May 21.