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A $17 million plan to widen the only remaining two-lane stretch of John Deere Road is whetting the development appetite of three surrounding cities, all hungry for retail expansion along the corridor.
But Deere & Co. has shown no enthusiasm so far for commercial development along the stretch of road that fronts its corporate headquarters in Moline.
Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar's budget includes the road-widening project for a stretch of John Deere Road that some development officials have called the Quad-Cities' "missing link."
The project calls for increasing the final two-lane portion--from 70th Street to Colona Road--to four lanes.
Work could get under way yet this year, creating a limited-access divided highway for most traffic and turning the existing highway into a frontage road for access to Deere's headquarters and several residences.
That would ease the twice-daily traffic crunch when Deere employees go to and from work.
"The whole concept of John Deere Road as at least a four-lane (road) has been around for a while," said Gary Vallem, the director of the Bi-State Regional Commission, which has worked with state transportation officials for the past 25 years on plans for the now-bustling road that provides an east-west link for the Illinois Quad-Cities.
"In terms of four-laning, it's the final piece," he added. "It's been called the gap, various other things, the missing link."
For Vallem and others, the project has been brought to the forefront...