August 2023

Due to the Village's preparedness in being shovel-ready to begin the Lake Shore Drive Project, the Village has received additional funding of $1.2 million. This increases the funding of the overall project from just over $2.1 million to $3.32 million. The additional funding allows the roadway project to extend westward along Sprucewood Lane to Rolling Ridge Lane.

The beginning work for the Lake Shore Drive Project has already started. The appraisals on the needed easements for construction have been submitted to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) for their review. Residents affected by the acquisition of those easements can expect to be contacted in the coming weeks.

Prior to the roadway reconstruction, the water main along the route beginning at Green Tree Court to Sprucewood Lane will be replaced. Construction for the water main replacement is expected to start in March 2024. The Village is targeting a winter 2023 bid for the Lake Shore Drive Project, with the estimated construction starting in July 2024. Please visit our website, www.lindenhurstil.org/currentprojects, for more information as the project date gets closer.

Last week, the Village received a special visit from the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO) where the Village was presented with an award for our sustainability efforts with the Reuse-a-Shoe program. The Village has participated in the Reuse-a-Shoe program almost since the program's inception and has helped divert a significant volume of shoes from landfills.

Are you looking to participate in the Reuse-a-Shoe program? Bring your new, gently used, or worn shoes to the Reuse-a-Shoe drop box in the Village Hall Lobby. Please be sure to match-up pairs of shoes by tying the lacers together or using a large rubber band to group them together.

With kids back in school, it is important to know when to stop for school buses!

• On a two-lane road or highway, vehicles traveling in both directions must stop.
• On a multi-lane and divided roadway/ highway, vehicles behind the bus must stop, and the opposite direction can proceed with caution.
• Never pass a vehicle stopped for pedestrians or a school bus.

The Village's Food Truck Extravaganza on August 6th was a huge success! A big thank you to all our residents and visitors that spent their Sunday afternoon eating good food and drinks from our fantastic vendors. We'll see you in 2024!

After 40 years of service, the Village will stop operating as a postal substation and will move to a stamps-to-go service effective close of business on November 22. The decision to transition to a stamps-to-go service was initiated by the US Postal Service (USPS) after they re-evaluated their contractual relationship with the Village in hopes of minimizing the risk/liabilities of our operation.

As of late, the Village has been facing challenges with providing quality postal services to residents; we are not connected to USPS servers, so it prevents staff from tracking packages and accepting credit/debit transactions. Additionally, the USPS has discontinued tracking stickers utilized by Village staff and moved toward a modern tracking system, which the Village has no access to.

The stamps-to-go service will be a user-friendly option for residents to purchase stamps because it allows the Village to now accept credit/debit cards instead of only accepting cash and check. A majority of postal transactions were purchasing stamps, so the Village is pleased to be able to continue offering this service to our residents. With transitioning to a stamps-to-go service, the Lake Villa Post Office will absorb the PO boxes within Village Hall. Village staff is actively working with Lake Villa Post Office staff to coordinate messaging to ensure a smooth transition for all PO box users.

Discussion regarding the direction of Village provided postal services was part of the agenda at the June 12th and the July 24th Board Meeting.

The Village offers a variety of 50/50 programs that aim to reimburse residents up to 50% of their costs for participating in the program:

• Tree Replacement Program
• Shoreline Stabilization
• Rain/Barrel Compost Bin
• Culvert Replacement

These programs also help the Village further our sustainability efforts by enhancing our forestry landscape, preserving the shorelines of our lakes, improving stormwater drainage, and reducing water consumption. For program details, please visit our website, www.lindenhurstil.org.

Village Hall will be closed on Monday, September 4th, in observance of Labor Day. Garbage pick-up will be on Tuesday, instead of Monday.

Check out these photos residents have submitted into the 2023 Village Photo Contest!

All meetings are at 7:00 pm and are located at Village Hall. Agendas and packets are located on the Village website.