Lake Cook Merchants Claim Business Slows

Lake Cook Road construction between Ellendale and Deerlake Roads has been underway 11 days and already some merchants are talking about a business slowdown while the Village does what it can to soften the blow.

With parts of the pavement completely torn up and removed, traffic is down to one lane in each direction plus space for left turns. Deerfield Tire Co. owner Garrett Garofolo was delayed getting to his business April 15, the project’s first day.

Earlier: Lake Cook Road Project Shows Flexibility

“Street traffic is down and calls are down,” Garofolo said of the affect on his business. “It took me 30 minutes on the first day to drive to work from Skokie Valley Road to Waukegan Road. I timed it.”

After significant problems arose during the first half of the project two years ago, the Village of Deerfield and the Deerfield Bannockburn Riverwoods Chamber of Commerce got involved winning a year reprieve last summer from the Cook County Department of Transportation to give local business a breather.

While the Village cannot open lanes of traffic, it is doing what it can to ease the burden on the businesses located in the vicinity of Lake Cook and Waukegan Roads and encourage residents to support commerce in the south part of town.

“We’re currently looking for creative ways to promote commerce in this area,” Deerfield Project Manager John Guccione said. He is the Village’s liaison to the project devoting all his time to it until complete. “We’re doing our best to encourage residents to go there so they can still enjoy (the businesses) when then project is done.

Garofolo is not alone in his feelings. Vera Fazlich, who works at the Shell Gas Station at the corner of Lake Cook and Waukegan Roads, has noticed less traffic.

Alan Adkins, the general manager of Panera Bread just to the north of the construction zone, has not sensed a change. His company gave out more than 200 cups of free coffee Monday to customers as a way of thanking them for 15 years of support in Deerfield.

Garofolo was also unhappy Half Day, Deerfield and Willow Roads were under construction at the same time. “You can’t drive from east to west. Traffic is like water,” he said. “It will flow where it can.” He mentioned it is going to Dundee Road. “It’s slow there (now).”

Residents commenting on Patch’s Facebook page are trying to stay away from the area. “I avoid it. I take Deerfield Road to 41 to get to Northbrook Court,” Harry Steindler wrote on the page. “I go through the Corporate 500 complex south to cross Lake-Cook to go to the Sachs Center.”

Another Facebook commenter, Christine Koch, is taking the situation in stride. “If you're not trying to get somewhere within a specific time frame... no problem,” she writes. “(Sirius Radio Rocks) If you are, guarantee you'll be late (and frustrated).”

For complete up to date information on the project, check the Village’s dedicated website. Guccione indicates there are ways for businesses to promite themselves through the website.