Federal Funds To Pay For Cedar Lake Road Project

LAKE COUNTY, IL — Federal funds will help pay for two major infrastructure projects in Lake County.

In December, President Joe Biden signed an omnibus bill that included $5 million in federal infrastructure funding for Lake County, according to a news release from Lake County. A total of $4 million will be used for the cedar lake road alignment project, which will shift Cedar Lake Road to the west with new at-grade crossing at the railroad tracks in downtown Round Lake.

Improvements will also be made to the Milwaukee District North Metra station in Round Lake, and a new bike path and sidewalks will be added. Flooding mitigation improvements are also a part of the project, according to the news release.

The federal funds will also help pay for a flood mitigation project in downtown Lake Bluff. In total, $750,000 will be used to install a new storm sewer and realign an existing storm sewer to mitigate flooding issues, which have impacted public safety, economic development and local transportation in Lake Bluff.

Earlier this year, Rep. Brad Schneider submitted the Lake County projects to Congress to consider as part of a federal initiative called Community Projects Funding.

"Thank you to Congressman Schneider for advocating for this much-needed funding for these critical projects," said Lake County Board Chair Sandy Hart. "We are excited to see these funds quickly put to good use on infrastructure that will benefit Lake County residents and businesses for years to come."

The Lake County Board regularly works with local legislators on opportunities through its legislative committee.

"We are grateful for the outstanding partnerships we have at both the state and federal levels," said John Wasik, Lake County Legislative Committee Chair. "Infrastructure projects are costly, and collaboration is crucial to obtain the funding needed to make big, regionally significant improvements. We look forward to working with our great partners to get to the finish line on these projects.”