It is the year of drainage in Champaign, said many of Champaign’s city council members. The council held their annual capital improvements tour Tuesday, August 24. This was the fifth year the council has had a tour to monitor the infrastructure projects around Champaign, said Marci Dodds, District 4 council member.

Dodds said the tour is an opportunity to ask questions of the engineers who are behind all of the projects. She added that it is also a good way for residents to see what is going on with their city.

“Sometimes people get cynical about what the city does or does not do. This is stuff the city is doing for the city as a whole,” she said.

Champaign has a number of construction projects that have already started as well as projects that will begin next summer.

Windsor Road expansion

Also on the construction agenda is the Fourth Street Extension Project, which will construct all or a part of a two- or three-lane street connecting Saint Mary’s Road to Windsor Road, said Chris Sokolowski, city civil engineer. The project will feature pedestrian and bicycle facilities that are either on-street bike lanes or off-street shared paths.

The project will be funded by $533,520 federal earmark granted to the University: $30,000 in city funds, $105,000 from the University and $6.3 million in State Capital Bill Funding, Sokolowski said. This funding may not be enough to construct the complete project, in which case only a part of the project will be carried out, said Michael LaDue, District 2 council member.

Another one of the city’s major projects is the Windsor Road Interstate. The Illinois Department of Transportation has planned to rebuild the I-57 overpass at Windsor Road. The project will be finished in 2016. The state is seeking the city’s input on how to improve the roads in the area, to which the city has proposed the “Complete Street” project. This will extend bike lanes and sidewalks from Duncan to Staley Road, west of I-57.

Curtis Road reconstruction

The reconstruction of Curtis Road has also been a priority. The project has been a two-year effort to improve a 1.6 mile stretch of Curtis Road, including changes in the concrete pavement, shoulders, improved drainage by roadside ditches, street lighting and improvements to the intersection at Mattis Avenue.

The total cost of the project is $15,422,529 with the city’s contribution at $2,537,487. Aside from city funding, the project was financed by federal and local funds, including the Village of Savoy and Champaign County.

The pavement has been completed, but the traffic signals, street lighting and other work items are expected to be done later this year.

Flood control

Logan and Water Streets have been home to ongoing construction which began in May of this year. The project will reduce flooding at the railroad viaducts located along Logan, Clark and Randolph Streets. There will also be an eight-by-six-foot storm sewer which will be constructed west of First Street on White, Logan and Clark Streets.

Logan, Clark and Water Streets will also be reconstructed to feature new street lighting, an amphitheater and waterfall.

“It’s going to be a really nice usable space for people in our community,” said Deb Feinen, council member-at large.

The project has a total price tag of $5.3 million and is expected to be completed on Dec. 17.

The John Street sewer improvements are another major infrastructure project which will reduce flooding in the John Street Watershed. An existing 33-inch storm sewer will be replaced by a 60-inch storm sewer on John Street. The total price tag is $1.7 million, which will come from the stormwater management fund. Construction is expected to be completed Nov. 19.

“John Street and Logan Street will have perhaps the most noticeable effects on the people,” said Dodds.

She added that these improvements will be a relief for those who suffer from a lot of flooding in their homes during rain storms.

“The drainage projects are the most useful hands down,” LaDue said.