After the series of spring public meetings, more revisions to the plans will be made, and the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) will be submitted to the reviewing agencies for comment.  This document describes the environmental impacts of the proposed alternatives.  After this review, the DEIS will be released for public review and comment in fall 2006.  A public hearing will be held to formally record comments, which will be incorporated into the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS).

The FEIS, when complete, is sent to the reviewing federal agencies, including Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and others.  The agencies then have a specific period of time to comment on the FEIS and return a Record of Decision (ROD).  Once the ROD is issued, IDOT will have the approval to build the preferred alternative.

The next phase of the project-final design and construction-has many steps, including finding funding for all the pieces of the project.  These pieces include land acquisition, final engineering and cost analysis, right-of-way negotiations, coordination of construction with local communities, and more.  This is a long process, and one that will continue the partnership between IDOT, the communities, and regional residents and business.