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The road to “Rustic Road” status has been a long one — and there are still miles to go before Pouley Road sleeps — but the end of an eight-year journey might soon be coming to a happy ending for people who are interested in preserving Kane County’s rural roots.

A public hearing will be held at  7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 25, in Building A’s fourth floor conference room, 719 Batavia Ave., Geneva, IL 60134. The hearing “is for the purpose of soliciting public response and inquiries relative to the nomination of 13 parcels along Pouley Road, in Blackberry Township, to the Kane County Rustic Road  Program.”

The purpose of the Rustic Roads Program is to preserve and enhance Kane County’s rural character while incorporating transportation and development needs as subtly as possible. A Rustic Road is more or less a preservation district, in which the road is the designated geographic area.

In this case, the road corridor is the length of Pouley Road between Keslinger Road on the north and Hughes Road to the south. You can read more about the Pouley Road plan in this document. The road, located in the area of Johnson’s Mound, is a scenic gem, with a mature canopy of trees, abundant wildlife, views of two landmark buildings, forests and groves of crabapple trees, farmland and ponds.

The road was put up for nomination as a rustic road way back in 2006. The Historic Preservation Commission reviewed
the application, gave a thumbs up and directed staff  to complete a Corridor  Management Plan, which took more time than anyone might have expected.

First, state law required the village of Elburn to annex to the far side of Pouley Road, resulting in the  majority of the road being
under the village’s jurisdiction. This made it necessary to  obtain an intergovernmental between the village and the county to administer the program within the village.

Meanwhile, a plan to expand the footprint of Johnson’s Mound was being developed and had to go through a public review process. Once that plan had  been completed and approved, the Forest Preserve District was able to sign off on the Corridor Management Plan.

Of course, during that time, a couple of the properties along the road changed hands, so the county once again had to get approval from property owners. The plan was completed and signed by all the interested parties, leading up to the public hearing on Thursday.

From there, if approved, the commission will sign a resolution and forward it to the Development Committee and Transportation
Committee. If those bodies say OK, the measure goes to the Executive Committee and then the full County Board.