Elm Leaves

Elmwood Park-area road projects gear up

Updated: June 11, 2012 8:51AM

As summer approaches look out for heavy machinery to take over local streets in Elmwood Park to repair and revamp them.

Elmwood Park Public Works Director Dino Braglia said they are currently repairing and resurfacing some streets, but it is basically road patching.

He added that there will be several areas in the village where local streets will get a major overhaul, which includes sidewalk removal and replacement, installation of detectable warnings on the sidewalks and miscellaneous sewer improvements if needed.

“We try to focus on both sides of town,” he said referring to the north and south side of Grand Avenue.

The village has appropriated $700,000 to improve the following streets:

74th Court from Wellington Avenue to Schubert Avenue

73rd Avenue from Wellington Avenue to Diversey Avenue

73rd Avenue from Diversey Avenue to Wrightwood Avenue

Schubert Avenue from 73rd Avenue to Harlem Avenue

78th Avenue from Wellington Avenue to Sunset Avenue.

River Grove

Brent Leder, director of River Grove Public Works, said most of the work that was done to their streets was done last year. They have only one project for this year — a total alley repaving in concrete of Center Avenue and Arnold Street from Thatcher Avenue to Struckman Avenue.

He said they have a big project slated for 2013 in conjunction with Franklin Park along Elm Street, which they share on the east side. They will share the bill to rebuild the street from Grand Avenue to Belmont Avenue, which will cost about $3.1 million.

They’ve received a grant to pay for 80 percent, and the two villages will split the remaining costs.Franklin Park

Dave Talbot, village engineer, said there are two major street projects jointly planned for the summer, with a third one possible if funds are available.

Pearl Street and Reese Court reconstruction

Scope: Pearl Street from King Street to the village parking lot and all of Reese Court. Project will provide a new water main and sewer repair will take place, along with total road reconstruction.

Cost: $1.8 million. Of that, $600,000 will come from the Illinois Department of Transportation, $575,000 from state Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. The remainder will come from the village’s share of Motor Fuel Tax funds or general funds.

Pavement preservation (tentative)

Resurfacing. The village is looking at Edgington from King to Grand, Calwagner from Grand to Franklin and 25th Avenue from Grand to the Metra tracks, parts of Ruby and parts of Ernst.

“It depends how far we can stretch the budget,” village engineer Talbot said.

Northlake

Andy Pufundt, project engineer at Christopher Burke Engineering, said there are three street projects in the works for this summer.

Wolf Road and Fullerton Avenue traffic signal modernization

Scope: Replace the antiquated traffic signal equipment at Wolf and Fullerton

Cost: $226,537

King Arthur water main improvements

Scope: Replace the dilapidated water main in the King Arthur Court complex with 8-inch ductile iron water main.

Cost: Approximately $190,000

2012 Street Program

Scope: Pavement rehabilitation (roadway resurfacing and reconstruction)

Locations: Approximately 3.3 miles of various residential roadways. Exact streets undergoing rehabilitation will be determined by the City Council in the next month.

Cost: Approximately $1.7 million





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