DuPage forest district buying asphalt paver

DuPage County Forest Preserve officials are in the market for an asphalt paver.

But critics say the district should instead be contracting its asphalt jobs to the private sector.

"The idea of the forest preserve going into these businesses is way beyond their mission," West Chicago resident Charles Hold said.

Hold complained the personnel needed to run the asphalt equipment leads to unnecessary or patronage jobs within the district.

DuPage Forest Preserve Executive Director Brent Manning said personnel won't be designated to that machine and no new jobs will be created by its purchase.

"If you look at the net increase we've had since I've been here, it's about five people," Manning said. "If we're doing patronage, we're doing a hell of a bad job at it."

Manning has been at the district's helm for six years. He said four of the posts created since his arrival were connected to the district taking over St. James Farm in Warrenville.

Justin Frederick, the district's director of land management, said the new paver will replace a 13-year-old machine and will increase efficiency of the district's preventive maintenance schedule for its roads and parking lots. The district has budgeted about $50,000 for the paver, but it could cost less if the winning bidder is willing to accept the old paver for trade-in value.

The new machine would have a wider paving area and larger storage capacity. It's also faster, Frederick said. Those features would expedite paving jobs within the district.

Frederick said the district has 666,000 square yards of paved surface at its properties. That's the equivalent of 94 lane miles. By having a paving machine at the district's disposal, repair work can be done quicker than if the district had to go out to bid.

"Studies have shown that every dollar spent on preventive maintenance is a savings of $6 to $8 long term," Frederick said.

Hold disagrees because he believes the district is spending more money on personnel than it saves by avoiding the bidding process.

"The point is that there is no community in DuPage County that owns one of these machines and it was a mistake owning one of these things in the first place," he said. "You don't need to have one of these things for 90 miles of road. It should be contracted out because you can get tremendously low bids today."

Manning said the majority of paved surfaces in the forest preserve properties are parking lots and entrance roads, but there are occasions where the district may pave paths because of accessibility needs.

Frederick said the district's board of commissioners likely will review the purchasing proposal in the next few weeks.