Repairs coming to Graue Mill in Oak Brook

Graue Mill in Oak Brook is getting some much-needed repairs that will pave the way for the historic mill to once again use its water wheel to grind cornmeal.

DuPage County Forest Preserve commissioners on Tuesday agreed to hire FBG Corp. of Elmhurst to do repair work that will make the 163-year-old mill along York Road more resilient to flooding.

FBG will be paid $576,190 to do the improvements, including damp-proofing the foundation walls, replacing part of the basement floor and installing new concrete foundations under components of the wooden gear works.

A stormwater sump pump also will be installed to drain the area below the new basement floor.

Officials said the project "lays the foundation to complete additional repairs that would allow grist milling operations and education demonstrations to restart" at the district-owned mill.

DuPage Graue Mill Corp. - the nonprofit group that operates Graue Mill - had to stop using the water wheel in June 2013 when it was discovered that the foundation under the gears had shifted.

An electric grinder has since been used to make cornmeal at the mill. Still, district officials say there has been "a significant disruption" in the programming at the mill and "a decrease in school group attendance."

Forest preserve Commissioner Jeff Redick said he's pleased the repairs are set to begin.

"This has been a long process trying to get that facility back into working order so we can get back to some of educational components that are there," Redick said.

In addition, commissioners have given the DuPage Graue Mill Corp. permission to make interim repairs to the jib crane and grist mill inside the building.

That work will allow those components to be used until the district can pay for a long-term solution.

Graue Mill is closed for the season until April 19. Work on the project is expected to begin this spring.