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Aurora Beacon-News
February 5, 2002

Valley industry group supports outer belt

Major reservation: Association supports concept, but not necessarily the location

By Steve Lord
STAFF WRITER

GENEVA ó The Valley Industrial Association has joined the list of business-related organizations supporting the outer-belt highway.

But in supporting the project, the VIA Board of Directors made it clear it supports the concept of the outer belt, without supporting a specific place for it.

"Our emphasis is it has to happen, so let's plan for it," said Colleen Ruddy, association president. "It isn't our position to say where it has to be."

The board said it supports the outer belt as consistent with its mission of trying to "enhance the business environment, quality of life and orderly development in the greater Fox Valley area." The association represents 220 manufacturing companies in Kane, Kendall and DeKalb counties.

But the board also said it is sensitive to the planning Kane County has done in the western edge of the county. Ruddy said board members support a compromise that will provide some kind of north-south highway and preserve farmland and green space in western Kane.

"We support a compromise between the position of the state and Kane County's planning," Ruddy said. "We would like the land preserved, but we need a north-south rapid transportation lane."

The association board suggested the highway be limited access to stifle development along it, and said planning emphasis should be on making it "a transportation corridor and not a development corridor."

While some kind of outer-belt highway has been planned for the edge of the Chicago area for some years, it took on new life last fall when the Illinois Department of Transportation said it wanted to site a 400-foot corridor through southwestern Kane and western Kendall counties for a highway that would connect Interstates 88 and 80.

Since that time, the debate has been on as to whether or not the highway is needed, and if so, if the state should site the corridor before doing traffic tests to establish the need for the highway.

Some Kane County officials, including County Board Chairman Mike McCoy, R-Aurora, have fought IDOT's attempts to site the corridor, saying it conflicts with Kane County's plans to keep western Kane mainly agricultural uses and open space.