With Trustee Bob Dilling leading Manhattan’s July 1 meeting as Mayor Pro Tem in Mayor Mike Adrieansen’s absence, the board made some key approvals with regard to finance policies and major infrastructure improvements.
In regard to infrastructure, the board approved the IDOT resolution for maintenance for the 2025 resurfacing project.
Trustee Justin Young inquired of Public Works Superintendent John Tyk if this maintenance would complete the roads in Hanover Estates that had been postponed until subdivision construction had been completed, which Tyk advised it would.
PT Ferro Construction won the construction bid of $1,945,713.33 for the rest of Eastern Avenue’s reconstruction project, which will reconstruct the road between North Street and Smith Road.
Young inquired what the original budget was for the Eastern Avenue project, to which Tyk replied that the scope of work kept changing, but it was always right around $2.5 million for the entire project, which included the drainage work already completed.
Tyk said he believed the drainage work was around $420,000, and then the $1.9 million would’ve been for the rest of the road. The Vedette reported on March 22 that Austin Tyler won the culvert bid for $419,970, proving Tyk’s estimate to be correct.
Young inquired when construction would start, and Tyk explained they should know soon, as a pre-construction meeting is scheduled. He estimated it would take approximately six weeks to complete the box covers and, from there, the road would be resurfaced entirely and redone with a four-foot shoulder, and guardrails would be installed. There will be no curb and gutter, but the ditch will be reworked to allow for improved drainage.
Finally, Young asked if any change orders were anticipated, as the road’s condition had significantly deteriorated. Tyk explained Robinson Engineering had done its due diligence, and he is not expecting any change orders. He also added the base being in such poor condition is part of the reason they are undertaking a total reconstruction.
Carrie Pintar, the village’s engineer, added that part of why they do the soil boring and pavement cores is so they have a snapshot of what’s underneath the pavement. She explained that information helps them determine what work needs to be done.
“We have the ability to put in the correct pay items in order for the contractor to be aware of that situation. We also have contingency items in the contract should it be worse than what we expect,” Pintar said, adding they prefer to put in bid items for what-if scenarios so there aren’t costly surprises.
Dilling inquired if the rail is handling their part, to which Pintar explained Metra handles the work within their right-of-way. She added Metra will be putting concrete around the tracks, which will help with future maintenance.
Pintar also noted she had to attend a committee meeting with IDOT, as the detour will be on North Street and Rt. 52, when the road is closed for the project.
Trustee Clint Boone asked if it was known how long the project would take, in weeks or months, and Pintar and Tyk said the project is anticipated to take months but did not provide an exact estimate, noting it is weather-dependent.
The board also approved the installation of streetlights on Smith Road, from Foxford Drive to Rt. 52, for $11,647.47. There also will be a monthly charge of $123.13.
The final public works approval was for the Round Barn Farm water main extension project, which will bring water to the park. The village has been working with the park district to annex the Round Barn Farm property, of which the parties recently approved the agreement. The park district will have to pay to tap into the water line, and a recapture agreement is in place.
The village also adopted a new investment policy, which updates and replaces the previous investment policy from 2019. Finance Director Justin Vanvooren explained that a lot of the wording changed, but it was updated to be current with the Government Finance Officers’ Association (GFOA) best practices.
The board also amended the village code to allow for the designation of financial institutions and codified the resolution passed at the last board meeting, which allows two signatories from authorized individuals.
These approvals were mostly procedural in nature, but still important to enable the village business to continue without disruption.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.