Plainfield Trustees Approve Last Phase Of $8M Reconstruction Plan

PLAINFIELD, IL — The village Board of Trustees approved a $4.15 million contract with construction firm Gallagher Asphalt on Monday, March 2, to complete the 2020 Village Green Roadway Improvements project. The project, which began in 2018 and will end up costing an estimated $8.1 million, seeks to improve and/or replace public amenities in the Village Green neighborhood of Plainfield.

"We're in the final phases," Plainfield Public Works Director Allen Persons said. "We've bid the replacement of the roadways, curb-and-gutter, sidewalks... decorative street lighting will be installed as part of this project too."

Gallagher beat out five other companies to win the bid, Persons told the village board, and will be expected to use their bid award to complete the entire scope of this last phase. The 'phase' includes roadway reconstruction, sidewalk replacement, utility adjustments and the installation of decorative street lights in the area bound by Lockport Street to the north, James Street to the west, and IL Route 59 to the east. Due to the varied nature of the work, it is expected that Gallagher will subcontract out to other construction firms to complete what they cannot.

"We expect [Gallagher] to focus on the concrete," Persons said.

The project is expected to be completed by Oct. 1 of this year. Persons told the board that Gallagher was a reliable choice, as the village has made use of their services in the past. Most of the board accepted Persons' report on the issue, though Trustee Harry Benton said that Gallagher's past work had produced "subpar" results. Following this, he was the only trustee to vote 'no' on approving the contract with Gallagher.

In addition to the $4.15 million contract with Gallagher, the village board also approved a contract not to exceed $296,000 with Baxter & Woodman Consulting Engineers regarding the Village Green project. The engineers will oversee the project and provide technical consulting to village authorities in the coming months. The vote to approve this contract was unanimous.

"We are very excited about this project," Persons said. "We have met with the homeowners in that area on numerous occasions... to make sure there aren't any negative impacts out there."

To read a quick overview of the goals and history of the Village Green Improvements project, visit the Plainfield Public Works website.