Study Background

The City has attained federal Surface Transportation Program (STP) funds for improvements to Liberty Street. To qualify for federal funding, the City is preparing a study in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and in accordance with Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Bureau of Local Roads & Streets (BLRS) policies and procedures.

Project Purpose

The purpose of this project is to rehabilitate the existing roadway, evaluate the widening of the roadway, and provide connectivity of pedestrian accommodations through the length of the project.

The project is needed because of the existing poor pavement condition, inadequate pavement width turning movements for the City of Aurora's new Public Works facility, and lack of continuous existing pedestrian accommodations.

Proposed Improvements

The proposed improvement consists of resurfacing Liberty Street from Crane Avenue to Sartor Lane and widening and reconstructing Liberty Street from 2-lanes to 3-lanes from Sartor Lane to County Line Road. The 3-lanes will include one through lane in each direction and a center two-way left-turn lane. Sidewalk connectivity is also a part of the proposed improvements with sidewalk proposed on the north side of Liberty Street from Crane Avenue to Sartor Lane and on both sides of Liberty Street from Sartor Lane to County Line Road.

The City of Aurora's new Public Works facility on the south side of Liberty Street is anticipated to finish construction in 2025, and the existing 2-lane Liberty Street is not compatible with the needs of the new public works facility. The proposed 3-lane section between Sartor Lane and County Line Road will provide protected left turn movements for vehicles entering the new Public Works facility, as well as for vehicles entering the existing Dukane Precast property, improving the operation of Liberty Street.

Schedule

The project is scheduled to begin construction in Spring 2026, pending completion of Phase II Engineering and acquisition of the right-of-way necessary to construct the improvements.

Public Information Meeting

An open house public information meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 5, 2024 at City Hall (44 E Downer Place, Aurora, IL 60505) in the 5th Floor Conference Room. The public may stop by the open house meeting any time between 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm. The purpose of the public information meeting is to present the purpose and need for the project, the proposed improvements, the anticipated schedule and next steps, anticipated property impacts, and to solicit input from the public. Personnel will be present to receive input, provide information, and answer questions. Comments can also be submitted online by clicking here.

Persons with a disability desiring to participate in this meeting should contact Alisia Lewis by Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 630-256-3430 or LewisA@aurora.il.org. TTY users may contact the City at 1-800-877-8339. If special accommodations are needed, the contact person should be informed at the time of contact.

We encourage comments throughout the course of the study. Comments received by Wednesday, June 19 will be added to the record of this public information meeting.