The Normal Town Council on Monday approved three resolutions to proceed with work on the long-delayed Uptown underpass.
The separate measures included a $33.9 million construction bid from PJ Hoerr, a joint funding agreement with IDOT, and fiber relocation. PJ Hoerr, the second bidder from the fall, is involved after Millstone-Weber withdrew from the project. It cited requirements and timeline as reasons for backing out.
Monday's votes were along the same lines as a key November vote, with Kathleen Lorenz, Andy Byars and Scott Preston voting "no" each time, members Kevin McCarthy, Karyn Smith and Rory Roberge voting "yes," and Mayor Chris Koos casting the tiebreaking “yes.”
Ryan Otto, town director of engineering, explained town goals have not changed since that November discussion. Those include a safe crossing at Uptown Station, an ADA-compliant design, safe Amtrak access on the south boarding platform, elimination of the barrier the railroad creates between Uptown North and Uptown South, and job creation through construction.
Otto also provided a new proposed completion date of June 2028 for the project. While the $16 million in BUILD grant funds must be spent by Sept. 30, 2027, the overall project is not expected to be finished by that time. The grant funding will just need to be spent before that deadline.
Concerns
Some council members and public commenters expressed doubts over the feasibility and fiscal sense of the project. The underpass' cost has ballooned during the past decade of planning, from $10 million to $11 million in 2015, and now up to a total cost of $42.8 million.
The town is not required to build an underpass.
“Fundamentally, we don't need the underpass to continue the development of Uptown,” said Byars, who suggested the project’s price tag did not necessarily mean the town would see that much in value come back into the community.
A public commenter, Michael Dayan, also argued that tourism tax dollars — from the hotel-motel tax increase that was approved to pay off debt from the project — may turn out to be underwhelming with the current economic downturn, leading to penny-pinching.
“My question I would like the council to consider on that matter is, when there is an economic downturn, which we are either already in or very close to, what is the first thing that people stop doing? And that is traveling or going out to eat, so we're tying this debt to entertainment dollars, which may very shortly be going down if they haven’t already," said Dayan.
Others spoke in favor.
"We're not talking about expanding our property lines beyond Normal borders. We're talking about developing in a central core area that already has utilities, that has water, that has sewage service, that has stormwater," said Smith.
"And yes, we would be adding people using it, but we would also be adding their tax dollars to the rolls, and so it would have the benefit of increasing the tax base without a disproportionate burden of additional expense."
Other business
Also Monday, the council accepted an $877,475 bid from Stark Excavating for 2026 bridge and culvert repairs. The motion allowed the town to continue proactive routine repairs and maintenance done on aging bridges and the water tunnels underneath them.
Five locations were identified as candidates for work in 2026. Structures are on Adelaide and Blair streets, College and Fell avenues and Fort Jesse Road. Work is expected to begin in late May and must end by Oct. 15.
The town also approved awarding 30 Harmon Arts Grant Awards, totaling $50,000. The grant recipients will be honored during the next council meeting on June 1.
