Wauconda installing digital sign for community messages

A dilapidated community message sign near downtown Wauconda soon will be replaced with a modern, electronic model.

The village board on Tuesday agreed to purchase a new message board for a spot south of where Barrington Road and Route 176 intersect.

The village will buy the sign from North Shore Sign of Libertyville. It will cost $75,980 to manufacture and install the sign later this fall or in the winter.

Trustee Adam Schlick expects the sign will be used to promote community events and local businesses, and to "boost interest in all things Wauconda."

"It will give us a modern and highly visible tool to reach our residents and visitors," Schlick said.

The existing sign is on a tall pole and uses letters and numbers that must be hung manually by public works department employees.

It's equipped with a clock and internal lights, but neither system works, Interim Village Administrator Brad Fink said.

The new sign will have LED screens on its front and back. The screens will be more than 7 feet wide and 4 feet tall.

It also will have wireless communications hardware, so village staffers will be able to add, delete or edit messages remotely.

"Updating will take just minutes from a computer in village hall," Trustee Tim Howe said.

The new sign will be held aloft by two decorative stone columns. The entire structure will be more than 11 feet tall.

Schlick called the design "elegant."

"Once the area around the sign is landscaped, it will be an impressive feature on our Route 176 corridor," Schlick said.