DeKalb mayor defends roadwork timeline on North Annie Glidden Road underpass

DeKALB – DeKalb Mayor Cohen Barnes took to social media this week in defense of the city’s scheduled plans to perform pavement work on the North Annie Glidden Road underpass.

That roadwork, which is underway, is expected to be completed by Aug. 22, just in time for the start of move-in week for Northern Illinois University students, according to a news release from the city.

Social media debate peaked this week, with some calls questioning the timing of the roadwork with NIU students set to return to campus beginning Aug. 21. DeKalb Corn Fest also kicks off Aug. 23.

In a Tuesday night public Facebook comment on Shaw Local News Network’s story alerting the public to the construction, Barnes said officials hope to have the work wrapped up soon.

“Well, we will see how this ends up,” Barnes wrote from his personal social media account. “The goal is before move-in weekend. We are doing three [to] four times the amount of roadwork every year compared to previous years to catch up on our degrading roads throughout the city.”

In the first phase of the project, only northbound lanes will be affected, according to the city. One northbound lane will be open during the work. The city urged motorists to exercise caution during the work, as heavy machinery will be present along the road.

Work on the southbound portion of the underpass could be done next season, pending funding, according to the city.

The mayor stood up for construction crews tasked with the project and used the hashtag #proudlydekalb to close his comment.

“Do we get it right every time? No. But a lot of really good people working with all the vendors involved work hard to make it as smooth as possible,” Barnes wrote. “And they all read these comments. I want to commend our city staff for trying to balance improving our deteriorating infrastructure with all the complexities of timelines, multiple vendors and utilities in order to improve our roadways, our water supplies, our quality of life and our safety.”