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Aurora ready for road construction

Aurora is set to move forward on several projects that will patch streets over sewer improvements, resurface roads and widen major thoroughfares this summer and beyond. The city council is likely to approve four items related to road construction at its Tuesday, May 10 meeting.

Pending council approval, the city will pay Chicagoland Paving Contractors of Lake Zurich $408,810 to pave permanent patches over sections of road torn up last fall for sewer work, said Raymond Hull, superintendent of water and sewer maintenance.

The work will replace temporary patches that may have settled as vehicles passed over them with a smoother surface, Hull said.

Alderman Rick Mervine said pavement patching crews have taken too long to reach certain sites in the past.

“We need to plan to make this happen so any break in roadways or sidewalks gets fixed in a reasonable time,” Mervine said.

Hull said 234 sites across the city need pavement patching, but contractors will keep at least one lane open at all times to lessen any inconvenience to drivers.

Also likely for approval next week is a $537,775 contract with Aurora Blacktop of Montgomery for widening Montgomery Road from Alden Circle to the Waubonsie Creek bridge.

Along with widening the road from two lanes to three, the contract also provides for improvements to a nearby bike path.

The final two road improvement items likely to be approved next Tuesday relate to widening Eola Road from 87th Street north to Montgomery Road, but their approval would not mean construction is imminent.

The ideas before council would authorize a joint agreement with the state for an engineering study and hire a company to perform the study.

Pending council approval, HR Green of Yorkville will receive $298,858 to study traffic, intersection design, drainage and environmental concerns to ensure the proposal of widening the road from three lanes to five will meet the standards of the Illinois Department of Transportation.

According to a city memo, bringing the project from idea to completion is expected to take four years, with the engineering study expected to take between 12 and 18 months.

Another road construction plan, the 2011 street resurfacing project, was approved in late April. It provides funds for resurfacing 102 streets across Aurora, including sections of High Street, Downer Place, Sullivan Road, Bangs Street, Fenton Street, Galena Boulevard and Molitor Road.

The $4.9 million project will resurface 90,000 feet of roadways this year.