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Will County board approves countywide paratransit IGA and license-plate-reader placement; members press for funding backup plans
Summary
The board approved an intergovernmental agreement to launch AccessWILL, a countywide paratransit program, and an IGA with Peotone to place license-plate-reading cameras on county highways. Several members asked where funding would come from if state or federal grants end.
Will County Board members voted Dec. 18 to approve an intergovernmental agreement establishing a countywide paratransit service (branded in committee as AccessWILL) and to authorize an intergovernmental agreement with the Village of Peotone for placement of license-plate-reading (LPR) cameras on county highways.
The paratransit IGA makes residents 60 and over and residents living with disabilities countywide eligible for dial-a-ride service using a service-area map that includes a one-mile buffer outside the county boundary to accommodate common medical and other trips. Member Balage pressed staff in committee and on the board to identify "a backup plan of where the money's gonna come from to pay for this once the state or the federal government removes the funding." Public Works staff said the IGA’s service-area language and ongoing coordination with PACE allow additions of specific trip points and that discussion of funding contingencies will continue.
The board also approved multiple public-works consent items, including countywide contract awards for maintenance materials and a $5,300,600 figure cited for MFT-funded county highway improvements. A separate motion authorized professional services agreements for right-of-way appraisals and engineering design on Gougar and Gallagher roads and on Wilmington-Peotone Road.
In a separate roll-call vote, the board approved an intergovernmental agreement with the Village of Peotone to install license-plate-reader cameras on county highways; the approval passed on the recorded vote.
Public Works Chair and staff signaled follow-up committee meetings in early January to finalize details and implementation. Several board members requested additional background materials and mapping detail prior to broader deployment of the service and cameras.
The IGA and the consent items were approved despite the expressed concerns; staff committed to continuing conversations with townships and service partners to address specific routing and funding questions.
The board scheduled additional committee meetings for early January to continue oversight of implementation and budgets.
