As the County Board gets ready to update its strategic plan, we want to know what is important to you. Provide your feedback and help make our county even better by joining the next telephone town hall meeting at 7 p.m. Feb. 15. Sign up to receive a call.

You can also submit your ideas anytime through our “Community Voice” forum, and in Español. 

In 2016, the Lake County Division of Transportation studied four travel corridors to look at signal timings during peak travel times in the morning, mid-day, and in the evening. One of the corridors in the study was Deerfield Parkway from Buffalo Grove Road to Busch Parkway. The results of the study show LCDOT reduced delay by 113.1 hours and saved 85.8 gallons of fuel per day, for an annual benefit of $813,522.

The overall results of the study show that technology enhancements, adjusting the signal timings, and coordinating the signals through the Lake County PASSAGE system led to a reduction in vehicle delays (477.8 hours) and a reduction in fuel consumption (318.2 gallons) per day. Not only does this save money, approximately $3.1 million a year, but this also means less time stuck in the car and more time doing the things you want to do. An added benefit of the study was a reduction in CO2 emissions by 566 metric tons per year. Learn more about the study.

Volunteer your time to help pick up litter and debris along Lake County highways and bike paths. Volunteers adopt a section of a county highway, and commit to cleaning it twice a year. The Lake County Division of Transportation provides the equipment. You provide the manpower. Take a look at the available sections, fill out an application, and join the fun! Submit your application by Feb. 3. Learn more about the Adopt-A-Highway program.

The Lake County Forest Preserve District is working with the Lake County Division of Transportation (LCDOT) on the initial planning of a Wetland Mitigation Bank within the far west end of Buffalo Creek Forest Preserve in Long Grove. The bank will be used by LCDOT, the District and possibly other government agencies as compensation mitigation for unavoidable impacts to existing wetlands associated with future public improvement projects. LCDOT is currently finalizing plans for the wetland bank that provides 25 credits, which will include restoring the original hydrology of the area, native plant restoration and the expansion of hiking and biking trails. Plans are expected to be complete in spring 2017 with an anticipated construction start of early summer 2017. View Wetland Mitigation Concept Plan. 

See firsthand how the Lake County Sheriff’s Office maintains law and order for county residents by joining the next Citizen Police Academy beginning March 9. The 10-week program will meet from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Thursdays and is offered free to Lake County residents. Participants must be 21 years of age or older, be of good moral character, and have no felony convictions. 

Applications are available at the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, 25 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., Waukegan and the Sheriff’s Office website. Submit your application by Feb. 24.  For information, contact Deputy Roman Buchberger at 847-377-4211.

Crisis intervention officers are receiving specialized training to help them evaluate various mental health crisis incidents thanks to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office receiving the Federal Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program Grant. Topics covered in their training include mental health signs and symptoms, geriatric issues, returning combat veterans with traumatic brain injury and PTSD, child and adolescent disorders, autism spectrum disorder, excited delirium, medical conditions and psychotropic medications, risk assessment and law enforcement response. Watch this video to learn more about the training.

In observance of January as National Radon Action Month by the Environmental Protection Agency, you are encouraged to check radon levels in your home or apartment during the winter months. 

Radon is an odorless and colorless gas that naturally occurs in rock and soil. It can seep into homes from the soil through cracks in the basement floors and foundations, crawl spaces, poorly sealed sump pumps, porous cinder block walls and other foundation floor and wall penetrations.  

Short-term test kits are available through the Lake County Health Department for $10. Watch this video to learn more about radon and the test kits.

Forest Preserves News

Summer camp early bird registration ends Feb. 15
Camps are designed for summer fun and learning, and include topics such as nature, recreation, art and history. Week-long sessions at locations throughout the county make it easy to find camps that are convenient for you. Browse our schedule of camps online, and register by Feb. 15 to receive an early bird discount. Learn more

Cultural items to be transferred to Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians
The remains of a minimum of 13 individuals and associated funerary objects belonging to the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians will soon be transferred from the Lake County Discovery Museum's collections to the tribe under the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Ownership of the remains was transferred to the District in 1989 from the County of Lake, which had previously acquired the collections from the privately-owned Lake County Museum of History in 1965. Items will be transferred in a manner that is consistent with the NAGPRA. Learn more about the Museum.

As always, I welcome your feedback. If this newsletter was forwarded to you, please sign up to continue to receive news about Lake County and District 20.

Thank you,
Sidney Mathias 

Mr. Mathias, County Board member and Forest Preserve Commissioner, serves on:

Lake County Board, 20th District:
Ethics and Oversight Committee, Vice Chair
Law and Judicial Committee
Public Works and Transportation Committee  

Lake County Forest Preserves, 20th District: 
Planning Committee,  Vice Chair
Rules Committee