Elgin Veterans Memorial gets rolling

For Elgin leaders, it's time to saddle up and get the long awaited Veterans Memorial done.

The city council this week signed off on a $35,800 contract with the Naperville-based Hitchcock Design Group.

"We're gratified the city has finally taken the bull by the horns, so to speak," said Jack Cook, chairman of the Veterans Memorial Committee, which has been working with the city to make the project a reality by Nov. 11 -- Veterans Day.

The charge for Hitchcock will be to blend two visions -- the Veterans Memorial and library study gardens just north of the Gail Borden Library -- into a seamless picture.

"The challenge is trying to fit the current design to the site. It's not insurmountable, but it will change," project manager Mark Underwood said. "We're hoping to stay true to the design."

Hoffman Estates resident Mark Christoper Cundiff won a city-sponsored contest in 2006 to design the memorial.

But the original site, a former city public works location also north of the library, was polluted with oil and other contaminants and had to be cleaned up under direction from the Environmental Protection Agency.

So the memorial, which has a budget of about $750,000, has been slightly moved, and the location is only about 5,000 square feet.

Councilman John Walters said he wants Hitchcock officials to give more than just lip service to ensure Cundiff's design is preserved.

Cook agreed, saying: "We want to stick with it as much as possible."

Hitchcock, which also will assist the library on its master plan, is slated to complete its design by the end of March with construction to begin in May.