Voters Ax Addison Township Road District
ELMHURST, IL – The proposal to eliminate Addison Township's road district won the support of 58 percent of voters in Tuesday's election.
In the referendum, voters were asked whether they wanted to abolish the road district and have the township government absorb its responsibilities. The township includes the northern part of Elmhurst.
Under state law, elected highway commissioners control township road districts without interference from township boards.
According to the township, the road district maintains 28 miles of roads. Elected in 2017, Highway Commissioner Donald Holod makes $86,400 a year, according to the township records. That works out to $3,085 for every road mile.
Based in Wood Dale, the road district spent $2 million during the 2023 budget year, according to the state comptroller's website.
In rural downstate areas, township road districts usually take care of many more miles of roads than their suburban counterparts.
For instance, Adams County in western Illinois consists of 23 townships. All but two maintain more miles than Addison Township; most handle more than double. One of the two exceptions is Quincy Township, which overlaps Quincy, a town of nearly 40,000 that maintains nearly 190 miles of roads.
In the Chicago suburbs, towns, counties and the state own nearly all the roads, with little left for townships. Elmhurst, for instance, maintains 150 miles of road, nearly six times Addison Township's workload.
Under state law, townships must handle three functions – maintenance of roads, assessment of properties for tax purposes and distribution of "general assistance" to the poor.
In the suburbs, townships often add a variety of social services to their responsibilities.
Holod, the highway commissioner, did not return a message for comment on the referendum in September.
The township's supervisor, Dennis Reboletti, noted the referendum his responses to Patch's questionnaire for the state representative's race.
He said voters would decide whether they wanted to keep an elected highway commissioner.
"This would save the salary, without a reduction in services," Reboletti said. "When it makes sense to consolidate, we should."
