February 20, 2025
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Bradley begins 2nd phase of Village Hall rehab

By Lee Provost
The village of Bradley's new Bradley Community Center is located at 428 W. Broadway St., about one block west of the Village Hall.

The village of Bradley's new Bradley Community Center is located at 428 W. Broadway St., about one block west of the village hall. This location will be the site for village board meetings for the next few months. (Daily Journal/Tiffany Blanchette)

BRADLEY – Instead of hammering out legislation or development agreements, a much different – and literal – type of hammering is now taking place inside Bradley Village Hall.

The $645,866 rehab project kicked off late this week after the trustees on Monday unanimously approved the construction project bids for the property along West Broadway Street.

The Village Board meeting held Monday will be the last one inside the boardroom for at least the next few months.

Board meetings will transition into the Bradley Community Center, 428 W. Broadway St., which also went through a major renovation within the past year.

The rehab of the area within Village Hall where the board conducts its meetings twice a month is not expected to be completed until June.

The construction pricing for the Village Board room does not include technology to broadcast board meetings on the village website, a now-common practice within local government.

Mayor Mike Watson said the village will broadcast its meetings. He said officials are collecting prices for this portion of the project. This will be a separate contract.

In all, the rehab will consist of about 2,500 square feet. The project was divided into five areas:

  • General trades – Johnson Downs Construction, Kankakee, $445,770
  • Mechanical – M&M Sheet Metal, Kankakee, $82,679
  • Electrical and lighting – Ruder Electric, Kankakee, $52,067
  • Masonry – Knotts Masonry & Construction, Manteno, $34,500
  • Flooring – TSI Commercial Floor Covering, Tinley Park, $23,850

A significant portion of this project will be devoted to the heating and air conditioning. It is an old system, and those who have attended board meetings know that there are areas of the room that can be very chilly and others that can be rather warm.

The heating and air conditioning alone will account for about $125,000, or about 20% of the cost of the project.

It was about two years ago that the area inside Village Hall where the administrative offices are located was gutted, redesigned and remodeled.

A significant part of that project was completed through the village’s Public Works Department. The rehab phase was about $350,000.

Mayor Mike Watson said this phase will be a little more in-depth, meaning more electrical and mechanical, so the work is being completed by outside businesses.

“With the upgrades we will have made to the Village Hall, taxpayers should be able to get another 30 years out of this location,” he said. “We think that is well worth the investment.”

When the rehab work was being completed two years ago, the village moved its meetings into office space in the public works building.

Regarding the Bradley Community Center, the village purchased the 6,000-square-foot building in late 2021. In 2024, a $971,000 rehabilitation was completed.