by:  Diane Benjamin

At the meeting last night, we were told the highway is needed because of the growth projected by 2035.

The growth estimates are questionable and nothing predicted in the past has actually come to fruition, but that’s not the point.

Growth.  What comes to mind?  Maybe more houses, businesses, roads, sewers, schools, police and firefighters?

How does a 4 lane divided highway on the eastern edge of the existing town fit into the growth plan?  Growth to the east?   Does a highway through your neighborhood come to mind when you think of growth?  Growth much farther east to get away from the highway?

The west side has a four lane divided highway.  Was it suppose to promote growth?  The outlet mall didn’t work out too well.  Otherwise, there is a new Walmart, a movie theater, a few other businesses, but nothing close to  Veterans Parkway on the east.

Could the real goal be to stop urban sprawl?  Who wants a subdivision next to an expressway?  Normal claims everything revolves around Uptown now.  The Downtown Bloomington Association says THEY are the future, and much of the Council wants to pass a downtown plan.  Maybe this article needs another read:  http://blnnews.com/2013/03/21/obamas-plans-for-the-suburbs-and-how-to-stop-them/

It should be evident that a 4 land divided highway has nothing to do with growth.  It looks a lot more like this:  Hop off of 55, race south, end up in the south east corner of town.  Hamilton Road will eventually be an off-ramp.  Gee, where will that road lead?

Oh, forgot!  There will be bike lanes parallel to the new road!  It will be separated by a fence, so no worries about getting run over at 65 miles an hour.  Are the bikes going to use the exit ramps?   Maybe they will have bike lanes too.

You need to know where this idea came from.  Do you recognize these names?

Some of them you might recognize, but probably not all of them.  These are the commission members that makes up the McLean County Regional Planning Commission.   Ronald Reagan tried to ban Regional Planning Commissions because their funding comes mostly from state governments who get their money from the Feds.  The states are telling local governments what they want, with input from the feds of course, instead of local people making their own decisions.  None of these jobs are elected, yet these people work with IDOT to  plan and acquire funding for the entire county.  http://www.mcplan.org/department/board.php?structureid=16

Planning isn’t local when the money isn’t local.  Look at their website.  They have extensive plans for the entire area.  Yes, the un-elected and special interests control your future and have for years.  They have been at this for so long, they can’t imagine there is a problem with their logic.  The people are immaterial except when presented with 2 alternatives.  There is no third: we don’t want it.

More to consider:  There are already subdivisions east of Towanda Barnes.  Were those people told before they bought a lot that a major divided highway was coming through? Do you think lawsuits won’t be filed?  Under one plan, a gorgeous relatively new home on east Fort Jesse will be demolished.  Why were building permits ever approved for subdivision or country houses if this plan has been in the works for years?