Mount Prospect pursuing Northwest Highway pedestrian bridge

Mount Prospect is taking the lead in pursuing funding for a bicycle and pedestrian bridge over Northwest Highway and the Union Pacific railroad tracks to link Melas Park with Meadows Park.

Officials say the bridge will offer safe north-south access to schools, recreation, shopping and public transit.

Mount Prospect is applying for an Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) grant to help fund design and construction. The grant could cover $2 million of the $3.1 million cost. The village board has passed a resolution authorizing the application.

"It does not commit the village to construct the project," Mount Prospect Public Works Director Sean Dorsey said of the application.

The project has the support of Mount Prospect Elementary District 57, the Mount Prospect Park District, the Arlington Heights Park District and Northwest Suburban High School District 214, Dorsey said.

Costs not covered by the grant would be funded by local governments.

"Our expectation is that the shareholders that I mentioned, the park districts and Arlington Heights, as well as the village, would split that cost," Dorsey said.

Under the proposal, the bridge would be built at the northeast corner of Melas Park and in the southwest section of Meadows Park. It would consist of two 125-foot spans with a center pier between Northeast Highway and the railroad. The length would be 1,300 feet, including the approaches.