Glen Ellyn hires firm for traffic study

Sometimes, in order to get free money, you first have to spend money.

That's the opinion of Glen Ellyn Public Works Director Joe Caracci when it comes to federal grants.

The village board agreed with him Monday, despite objections from some residents regarding a construction project on Crescent Boulevard between Park Avenue and Riford Road.

The village will hire Burns and McDonnell Engineering to conduct a study of the area, setting in motion a process Caracci said could eventually lead to money from the federal government's Surface Transportation Program. The motion passed 5-0, with one trustee abstaining.

The firm will be paid $44,000 to research possible ways to improve safety, traffic flow and the appearance of that stretch of road, which splits Glenbard West High School from Memorial Field.

In December, Glenbard High School District 87 approached the village to see how it could cooperate to improve the area.

School district officials hope to upgrade the field, as well as install artificial turf, by the end of the summer. Before they do so, however, they wanted to coordinate with the village to make sure any changes fit with the village's long-term plan for the area.

The village had planned on starting construction on a roughly $600,000 resurfacing project in 2015. However, if the village receives money from the federal program, that could be pushed up to as early as 2012.

Caracci said he hopes to have the engineering study completed before an August deadline to apply for the grant money.

"We were asked if there were any way that we could move Crescent Boulevard work up in the schedule," he said. "We said only if the funding were available."

STP funds would come in at a 70-to-30 cost share ratio, but Caracci said there is no way to estimate how much a project would cost before the engineering plan comes in.

Despite abstaining from the vote, Trustee Peter Cooper said he had full confidence that the school district's timeline was not pushing the engineering study, and that the study will help Crescent Boulevard whether the village receives the grant or not.

"I want to make sure we're not rushing into something because of an artificial deadline," he said. "I am confident we are not doing that."

But some residents were concerned trustees jumped the gun on the project because of the school district's request.

"I am very concerned about rushing the study, the conclusion, the gathering of input from the broader community," longtime Glen Ellyn resident Kathy Cornell said.