Road projects to take place 'everywhere' in Elgin this year

Elgin will perform a slew of road and utilities projects this year funded by a $25 million bond issue, the most the city has borrowed in more than 15 years.

"The good news is that projects are everywhere," Public Services Director Greg Rokos told city council members Wednesday. "The bad news ... is that the projects are everywhere."

The money will be divided between $15 million for street projects and $10 million for water and sewer projects.

The borrowing is being funded by a property tax increase. Residents who live in Kane County will see an average $120 increase on their property tax bills; those who live in the Cook County portion will see an average increase of $84, city officials said

Residents can keep up with construction updates at cityofelgin.org/construction. Also, the city plans to host open houses for specific projects, and will keep residents updated via social media, email blasts and 311 mobile app updates, senior management analyst Laura Valdez-Wilson said.

Work will take place in the Century Oaks West neighborhood May through October, the Eagle Heights South neighborhood March through November, the Lin Lor Lane/Easy Street area March through November, in the Northeast neighborhood May through October, in the Oakwood Boulevard and Tefft Avenue area July through October, the Woodard and Standish streets area April through June, and the Plum and St. John streets area March through November, Rokos said.

There will also be sewer separation work in the Bluff City Boulevard area, plus resurfacing on a long list of "collector," or main, streets including Big Timber Road, Highland Avenue, Summit Street, Chicago Street, McLean Boulevard and more from April through July, he said.

Some road projects will entail resurfacing, which only affects the top layer and adds 10 to 12 years of life to the road, while others will entail "rehabilitation," which means digging deeper and adding 20 to 25 years of life, Rokos said.

The city consults with outside engineers for a "scientific approach" to determining what street work needs to be done first, City Manager Sean Stegall said. "Unfortunately, we have more streets that need to be rehabilitated than this amount of money will allow us to fund," he said.