Title
title
A Motion to Approve the Design Concept and Scope of the Chicago Ave Streetscape Project Honoring Dr. Percy Julian
End
Introduction
Planning Resources, Inc. has finished their conceptual design for the Chicago Avenue Streetscape in honor of Dr. Percy L. Julian and will present the results of their community outreach and design efforts, discuss the impacts improvements in this corridor will have on Village infrastructure, and long-term plans for safety improvements in the area.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends approving the proposed conceptual design and give direction to move forward with soliciting proposals for a contract to create construction documents for the selected scope of improvements.
Prior Board Action
The Board has taken the following prior action:
• The Village Board approved a contract with Planning Resources, Inc. at the December 3, 2024, meeting (RES 24-326)
Background
At the December 3, 2024 board meeting the Village Board approved a contract with Planning Resources, Inc. (PRI) to create an integrated branding, streetscape design and engage in community outreach for the Chicago Ave Streetscape Honoring Dr. Percy Julian project that was identified in the 2024-2029 Capital Improvement Plan. Tonight’s item is a presentation and discussion on the process and the conceptual design of a streetscape project to honor Dr. Percy Julian. Pending Village Board consensus on the project’s design concepts and scope, staff include costs for the design and construction of the project in the proposed 5-Year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for upcoming discussions with the Finance Committee and Village Board.
As part of this project five in person events were held to gather feedback from community stakeholders. Attendees were shown different art styles, site furnishing, educational exhibits and were asked to choose which resonated with them. Attendees were also asked about Dr. Julian and their experiences traveling along Chicago Ave. An online survey was posted at engage oak park giving those who could not attend an opportunity to give feedback.
This community engagement helped shape the proposed concept and scope for a streetscape project on Chicago Avenue honoring Dr. Percy Julian which PRI will be presenting at tonight’s meeting. The proposed project includes improvements along Chicago Avenue starting at the Julian home at East Avenue to Austin Boulevard. These recommended improvements consist of: gateway sculptures in the commercial section of Chicago Avenue between Humphrey and Austin; large and small educational and artistic exhibits throughout the corridor; smaller scale identifiers using sculptural panels and medallions; site furniture; and large-scale intersection improvements at East, Lombard, and Humphrey Avenues including roadway medallions inlayed in new bricks raised intersections and decorative paver sidewalk areas. PRI also includes recommendations for using augmented reality to make a more immersive, educational, and informational experience.
The estimated construction cost for the physical improvements associated with the streetscape project honoring Dr. Percy Julian is estimated at approximately $3M plus a roughly 25% contingency of $900,000 since the project is in the early conceptual stage. The augmented reality is estimated at roughly $600,000.
Tonight’s agenda item will focus on the proposed streetscape project’s design and scope, however there are also other project’s on Chicago Avenue which intersect and overlap with the Percy Julian streetscape project which should be considered as part of a larger conversation regarding the corridor.
Chicago Avenue from Oak Park Avenue to Austin Boulevard is identified on the High Injury Network in the Vision Zero Action Plan (VZP). Several improvements are identified in both the Vision Zero Action Plan and the Bike Plan Update to address and improve safety on Chicago Avenue. The VZP and Bike Plan recommend installing a protected bike lane on Chicago Avenue from Kenilworth to Ridgeland to slow traffic, improve safety for cyclists, and improve pedestrian safety. The VZP also recommends installing pedestrian refuge islands in the commercial portion of Chicago at Cuyler, Taylor, and Humphrey Avenues, and creating a raised intersection at Lombard Avenue to slow traffic and improve pedestrian safety. With the exception of the raised intersection at Lombard Avenue there is not much overlapping work between the two projects, however staff recommends coordinating construction of improvements in the commercial portion of Chicago Avenue to avoid repetitive disruption to traffic and the businesses.
Chicago Avenue was resurfaced using federal funds in 2016 from Austin to Harlem. The roadway surface is in acceptable condition at this time. The watermain that runs the whole width of the Village under Chicago Avenue is from the late 1800s and has a relatively low break history. The watermain is not a priority to replace at this time and would most likely be replaced the next time Chicago Avenue was repaved. However, if the Board desires to move forward with the construction of decorative features such as the raised intersections, pedestrian safety improvements, and decorative items included in the Streetscape project it would beneficial to replace the watermain prior to making this investment above it.
Additionally, staff has evaluated the corridor for infrastructure improvements that would be beneficial to be completed either with or prior to any streetscape project. These items were generated from long term planning documents such as the Vision Zero Action Plan, the Bike Plan Update, 2014 Sewer Masterplan and 2016 Water System Masterplan.
If the streetscape is implemented in its full scope shown in the presentation, then it would be advisable to replace the watermain beneath any improvements within the roadway to logical termini, and to implement the Vision Zero recommendations along with recommendations from the other planning documents at the same time. This would most likely result in a phased project occurring over several years due to budget impacts. Staff would solicit proposals to develop construction documents for the desired improvements and include the project in the upcoming 5-Year CIP. The estimated cost of these improvements is shown below:
|
Chicago Ave Infrastructure Improvements-East to Austin |
|
|
|
Items |
Cost |
|
Water/Sewer Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Full watermain replacement |
$2,700,000.00 |
|
|
Elmwood-Chicago Sewer Connection |
$90,000.00 |
|
Vision Zero Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Raised Intersections at Lombard and Chicago |
$150,000.00 |
|
|
Pedestrian Refuge Islands at Chicago and Taylor |
$50,000.00 |
|
|
Pedestrian Refuge Islands at Chicago and Humphrey |
$50,000.00 |
|
|
|
|
|
Bike Plan Update Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Protected Bike Lane Ridgeland to East (Bike plan limits extend to Kenilworth) |
$250,000.00 |
|
|
Connect Bike Lane to Chicago and Austin |
$100,000.00 |
|
Total Non-Streetscape Infrastructure Cost |
|
$3,390,000.00 |
If the streetscape is scaled back to not include any items within the roadway, then it can be separated from the infrastructure and planning improvements. The streetscape improvements could be installed in the parkway areas and the other infrastructure improvements could be constructed independently. Staff would solicit proposals to develop construction documents for the streetscape improvements and include the design for reduced scope project in the upcoming 5-Year CIP.
Alternatively, the streetscape could be phased geographically with the proposed decorative treatments, infrastructure improvements and Vision Zero safety upgrades being installed from Ridgeland to Austin and the intersection of East and Chicago could be a second phase. This would approach would focus on completing the improvements in the commercial districts to the east and limit the scope of the infrastructure improvements to the west of Ridgeland. Under this scenario, the vision zero improvements west of Ridgeland would be installed at a later date under a separate project and the watermain in that area would only be replaced at the East Ave intersection. The estimated cost of these improvements is shown below:
|
Chicago Ave Infrastructure Improvements-Ridgeland to Austin |
|
|
|
Items |
Cost |
|
Water/Sewer Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Watermain replacement from Ridgeland to Austin |
$1,800,000.00 |
|
Vision Zero Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Raised Intersections at Lombard and Chicago |
$150,000.00 |
|
|
Pedestrian Refuge Islands at Chicago and Taylor |
$50,000.00 |
|
|
Pedestrian Refuge Islands at Chicago and Humphrey |
$50,000.00 |
|
Bike Plan Update Improvements |
|
|
|
|
Connect Bike Lane to Chicago and Austin |
$100,000.00 |
|
|
|
|
|
Ridgeland to Austin Non-Streetscape Infrastructure Cost |
|
$2,150,000.00 |
Timing Implications
Approving this Motion would allow Staff to solicit proposals for the next phase of the project, which would be the development of construction documents for the desired scope of the streetscape project.
Budget Impact
Approving this motion has no direct budget impact as the conceptual design contract was budgeted for in FY 2025. The estimated construction cost for the physical improvements associated with the streetscape project honoring Dr. Percy Julian is estimated at approximately $3M plus a roughly 25% contingency of $900,000 since the project is in the early conceptual stage. The augmented reality is estimated at roughly $600,000.
Pending Village Board consensus on the project’s design concepts and scope, staff include costs for the design and construction of the project in the proposed 5-Year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for upcoming discussions with the Finance Committee and Village Board.
Staffing Impact
There is no staffing impact associated with this item. The item aligns with the department’s core service delivery.
DEI Impact
This agenda item proposes to honor the achievements of Dr. Percy Julian, a member of a historically underrepresented group in receiving such public recognition. Additionally, the proposed streetscape includes educational items on the impacts of the African American community of Oak Park beyond just the impacts of Dr. Julian.
Community Impact
This plan was developed, including comments received at five separate in-person community events and feedback received through engageoakpark.com. If implemented, the streetscape improvement project would have a positive impact on the neighborhood and the businesses in the area.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends adopting the motion approving the conceptual design with direction to include all the proposed infrastructure improvements from East Ave to Austin Blvd. Staff will solicit proposals for the development of construction documents for a project phased over multiple years to complete all the selected improvements
Advantages:
• The streetscape on Chicago Ave will be improved from East Ave to Austin.
• Several safety improvements will be constructed on locations identified in the Village’s Vision Zero Plan as part of the High Injury Network.
• The aging watermain will be replaced, reducing the likelihood of future disruption.
Disadvantages:
• This action has cost implications
Alternatives
Alternative 1
The Board can adopt a Motion approving the conceptual design with direction to implement a reduced scope for the streetscape project. Selecting an option that removes any proposed work from the roadway or to limit the scope geographically would reduce immediate costs substantially. Selecting to do only some of the safety improvements at this time would reduce the footprint of the watermain replacement and defer those costs to a future date.
Advantages:
• The streetscape on Chicago Ave from East Ave to Austin Blvd would be improved.
• The improvements would have a lower cost.
Disadvantages:
• The impact of the streetscape improvements would be reduced, and some of the safety improvements would not be installed on the High Injury Network.
• The portions of the watermain that are not replaced as part of this project would still need to be replaced as part of a future project. Most likely, the next time Chicago Ave is repaved.
Alternative 2
The Board can approve the conceptual design but decide not to move forward with the project at this time.
Advantages:
• This action will result in no immediate expenditures.
Disadvantages:
• The existing streetscape on Chicago Ave will not be improved, and safety and infrastructure improvements will be delayed.
• The aging watermain would still need to be replaced as part of a future project. Most likely, the next time Chicago Ave is repaved.
Anticipated Future Actions
If approved, staff will present a design contract for the selected scope of this project at an upcoming Board meeting.
Prepared By: Bill McKenna, Village Engineer/Assistant Public Works Director
Reviewed By: Rob Sproule, Public Works Director
Approved By: Kevin J. Jackson, Village Manager
Attachment(s):
1. Order of magnitude cost estimate for streetscape improvements
2. Presentation