July 16, 2019

Howard A. Learner

Stopping Rt 53 Boondoggle in Lake County Illinois

ELPC and our allies won a major victory. The Lake County, Illinois board decided to stop pursuing a massive highway extension that would have been a boondoggle for developers, destroyed sensitive wetlands, and contributed to air pollution.

Lake County’s Route 53 has resurfaced several times over the years, and each time local communities and ELPC have stepped up to say no.

This is an important development for transportation decisions in the Midwest. It shows we value spending public resources wisely, instead of building new highways that lock us into limited transportation options for decades. We can make the transportation system work better with more cost-effective alternatives that work well for Lake county.

ELPC started working on this effort twenty years ago. We are in it for the long haul, to lift up the voices of local communities, protect local natural resources, and find pragmatic solutions to Midwestern challenges.

With Route 53, our persistence paid off. Read news coverage in Crain’s Chicago, Chicago Tribune, and Daily Herald.