Naperville leaders review sound system, dorm, Riverwalk
A downtown sound system. New dorm at North Central College. A Riverwalk park and extension. Permits for a very limited number of street food vendors.
Downtown Naperville is all lit up for the holidays, but leaders gathered this week to talk about projects other than shopping and celebrating.
"Downtown is much bigger than just the commercial shopping, social area," said Steve Rubin, a downtown property owner who leads the city's downtown advisory commission. "It's the (Naper) Settlement, the Riverwalk, the college, the children's museum, the library. There's a lot going on down here."
Here's an overview of downtown projects:
Sound system
Downtown Naperville Alliance wants to upgrade an old sound system to more easily play music during special events, but the idea hit some opposition earlier this year.
City council members in June asked where, how often and what type of music would be played, how a sound system could affect residents and if it would conflict with tunes some businesses play.
Katie Wood, executive director of Downtown Naperville Alliance, said she will be meeting with council members before January, when leaders can choose whether to include money for a sound system in next year's budget.
"We advocate replacing a current system on the rooftop of Eddie Bauer that is very antiquated and very manual," Wood said, adding a new sound system would be "only for the retail district and it would only be used during special events."
College projects
North Central College is building a $60 million science center on Loomis Street south of Van Buren Avenue, with construction projected to begin next summer. But what's getting underway first is construction of a new 229-bed dormitory between Chicago Avenue and Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium, said Jim Godo, assistant vice president for external affairs.
The new dorm will help absorb rooms lost when the college demolishes the 58-bed Student Village to make space for the science center.
The science center is designed to help the college better instruct students in the so-called STEM fields - science, technology, engineering and math - while Godo said the new dorm, with its suite-style rooms, is expected to appeal to upper-class students.
"We hope it will be an incentive to keep them residing on campus," he said.
Riverwalk park
A $1.1 million state grant will help with another North Central project: a Riverwalk at 430 S. Washington St., where a commercial building often called an "eyesore" used to sit.
"We're really happy that the college has stepped up and bought that property and we're going to see something built," said Bill Epp, chairman of the Riverwalk Commission.
Plans include a new Riverwalk segment, a sign advertising North Central College and some type of sculpture or iconic representation of the college's "storied" cross-country programs, Godo said.
Food cart permits
Debate over how many food carts should be allowed in downtown Naperville has arisen several times since they first were allowed four years ago, and now it's time for potential vendors to apply for the next round of permits.
The city council decided last year to allow two food vendors instead of four and to open the application process for $275 permits every two years. Permits for John's Rib House and Joey's Red Hots were extended until the end of 2014, but it's time for them - and other interested vendors - to apply for the next two years, said Allison Laff, planning services team leader. Applications are due Dec. 12.
Riverwalk extension
In January, the city council approved the idea of a future extension of the Riverwalk south to Martin Avenue from Hillside Road. Approval was for the concept only, and that's still where it stands.
"There's no current funding for the project and there's no timetable for the implementation, but it is a project that we look toward in the future," Epp said.
A Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin Robbins soon to be built at Washington Street and Hillside Road is one of the properties that backs up to the future Riverwalk extension, and Epp said the developer plans to build a retaining wall that will allow space for the path.