Safety Concerns Raised Over Plan for Deerfield Business District

DEERFIELD, IL - A reconfiguration plan for the northwest quadrant of Deerfield’s central business district has been questioned by a faith leader and Park District official.

Several individuals also spoke up against the plan to do away with Jewett Park Drive and replace it with a wide pedestrian walkway at the area bound by Waukegan and Deerfield Roads, Hazel Avenue and the railroad tracks during a recent Deerfield Plan Commission meeting, according to the Deerfield Review.

But the most vocal opponents proved to be the Rev. Suzan Hawkinson of the First Presbyterian Church of Deerfield and Park Board Commissioner Jan Caron.

Hawkinson said the plan is way too specific.

“Jewett Park Drive is gone and we have a two-way road through our parking lot,” she said. “Parents pick up and drop off 100 children in our parking lot.”

“The park district was never asked. We have the same concerns as (Hawkinson) of safety. At this time the park district cannot support the plan,” Caron added.

The walkway in the plan is proposed to be built between the two parking lots and extend more north than the Deerfield Public Library. The Commission unanimously recommended the proposal with modifications.

more via the Deerfield Review