Carol Stream awards contract for Illini Drive bridge replacement

The Carol Stream village board has awarded a $545,456 contract to replace the deteriorating Illini Drive bridge this summer.

Assistant Village Engineer Bill Cleveland said the project is slated for completion Sept. 15, but officials hope it will be finished by the end of August.

The completion date will depend on weather and the speed at which the parts can be fabricated, Cleveland said.

"If there was a terrible flood, it could be October," he said. "If it's perfect conditions and the manufacturer can build those box culverts for us in the next couple of weeks, it could be August. That's our best hope."

Alliance Contractors, Inc. will oversee the project, Cleveland said. Some paperwork still needs to be submitted and a pre-construction meeting must be held before the work begins.

Cleveland said a detour route will be posted taking motorists from Gary Avenue to Thunderbird Trail and then to Arrowhead Trail.

The project comes after the discovery that some of the bridge's support beams had deteriorated, Cleveland said. The Illinois Department of Transportation put an 18-ton load limit on the bridge.

A box culvert will replace the bridge, Cleveland said.

"It's a pretty small project so it's going to be done pretty quickly," he said.