Prospect Heights wants the beauty, not the cost
Prospect Heights City Council members are working to balance their wish to provide a lasting impact on the appearance of the city's tourism district with the need to stay within budget on the proposed work.
Last year, the Prospect Heights Tourism District board, along with city aldermen, created a list of visual enhancements they hoped to see in the area extending from Milwaukee Avenue and River Road to the Chicago Executive Airport.
The work, to be funded in part through a 5 percent hotel room tax, includes new signage along the Palatine Road overpass, sidewalks and additional landscaping. Officials say the goal is to not only make the area look more appealing to visitors, but make it more pedestrian and bus friendly.
However, city officials say now that bids on the work have been received, the projected costs are much higher than the initial estimate, and well above the $370,000 available to spend.
"We struggled with that because initially, the architect came back with a $400,000 estimate to complete the whole job, but that's not how the bids came back," said Mayor Nick Helmer, who also serves on the tourism board.
Helmer said the exit and entry area surrounding Milwaukee and Palatine roads went untouched for a number years because it was considered Cook County's responsibility and there was no money available for improvements.
"For those who use Milwaukee Road and Palatine Road, they know it's been a visual mess for a number of years," he said. "Weeds were growing all over in medians and on the sides of the road. There were overgrown embankments ... it was visually very poor."
Helmer said the proposed improvements were inspired by some of the work Wheeling had done near the airport.
"They are our co-partners for the Chicago Executive Airport and they've used flowers and signage to give a very pretty look," he said. "I thought it would be nice for the same to be carried alongside the airport and down to River Road."
From a list of options, a few specific near-term landscaping projects were selected, including creating an embankment of four landscape areas on Palatine Road and a short median embankment along Milwaukee Road, featuring a strip of trees and shrubs.
City council members last week postponed a vote on the proposed improvements because of funding issues. Among their concerns was the decision to save money - an estimated $95,000 - by cutting an irrigation system out of the project.
Third Ward Alderman Scott Williamson said he is reluctant to put in $150,000 in landscaping without proper irrigation. He recommended the city take a smaller scope and continue the project next year.
"We put some trees in the median this year and then enhance it with grasses and plantings the following year when we have another $100,000 to work with," Williamson said. "I understand that the tourism district wants to get this all done, but I don't want to cut off my nose to spite my face."
Fourth Ward Alderman Pat Ludvigsen said the work should be done in stages, starting with more vegetation and eventually growing to include pedestrian amenities, such as sidewalks, benches and crosswalks.
John Zachara, a representative of consultant Integrated Facilities Solutions, said he will go back to contractors to gets costs specifically focusing on the Palatine Road embankment, including irrigation.
The project will be back up for a vote at the city council's June 22 meeting.