Burr Ridge Backs Wolf Road Upgrade Plan

BURR RIDGE, IL – Burr Ridge agrees with its neighbor, Indian Head Park, on the plan for improvements to Wolf Road

Indian Head Park is taking the lead in the study for a 2.3-mile section of the two-lane road, which includes Burr Ridge.

Officials in Indian Head Park prefer expanding the road to three lanes, with the middle one for left turns. They also want sidewalks on both sides, rather than shared-use paths.

At Monday's Burr Ridge Village Board meeting, trustees backed Indian Head Park's chosen option.

Trustee Guy Franzese noted that Indian Head Park stood with Burr Ridge, Willowbrook and other towns five years ago for the closure of the Sterigenics plant, which was alleged to have caused cancer-causing pollution.

He also said the neighboring village joined the local movement to oppose Lyons Township High School's effort to sell its Willow Springs land to an industrial developer. The school board had kept its plan secret for months, violating the state's open meetings law.

Throughout the Wolf study, the overwhelming majority of public comments have come from Indian Head Park.

A reason for that is homes are closer to Wolf Road in Indian Head Park, said Strand Associates engineer Matt Gazdziak, who has been leading the study.

"In the Burr Ridge section, homes are set farther back, so there was a little less interest," Gazdziak told the Village Board.

Cook County paid for the study on Wolf upgrades and has indicated it aims to cover costs for the long-term project.

Mayor Gary Grasso expressed doubt that Cook County would come through, calling himself a cynic.

"I wouldn't want to spend a whole lot of time on something without any indication from Cook County that there's a high likelihood that it's going to get funded," he said.

But he said Burr Ridge would be a "good neighbor and weigh in."

In January, Patch wrote about a Burr Ridge resident whose wife was killed while bicycling on Wolf Road. The resident supports improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists.