A young town doesn`t have the major infrastructure projects that a Glen Ellyn or an Elmhurst might face, but 29-year-old Glendale Heights is taking steps now to prevent its streets and water and sewer systems from falling into disrepair.
In the next five years, the village will spend $1,590,000 to revamp streets, $2,390,000 to improve the 19 parks in the village and $4,860,000 for water-system, sanitary-sewer and storm-sewer improvements.
”The biggest preventative thing that we can do now,” said Martin Olsen, public works director, ”is to be sure that what we are doing is done right, so that we don`t have a problem in 10 years.”
The big growth period experienced in Glendale Heights in the 1970s has leveled off, Olsen said.
The village is in the middle of a $10-million sewage treatment plant expansion program mandated by the federal government. The plant`s treatment capacity is being increased to handle heavier flows of storm water and to allow for cleaner water release into streams, said Olsen.
The five-year street program focuses on the older streets in the village west of Glen Ellyn Road, between Larry Lane and Fullerton Avenue, the oldest part of town. ”We have a major crack-sealing program underway,” Olsen said. ”Keeping the street base dry (by sealing cracks) is the best way to extend the life of the street.” And streets are the most important thing when looking at prolonging the framework of the village, Olsen said.
The village may start a sidewalk rehabilitation program next year to go along with the street plan, Olsen said. He estimated that $500,000 will be needed to replace and repair all the sidewalks in need of rehabilitation.
The village is also using a cold in-place recycling system to prolong the life of streets and save money. When a street is broken up for reconstruction, Olsen said, the old asphalt is liquified and reused as a road base.
Olsen also said the trend in water and sewer projects is toward plastic pipes, which last far longer than cast iron.
