Sterling OKs $655K match for proposed multi-use bikeway path along East Second Street

STERLING – The Sterling City Council approved a resolution authorizing Mayor Diana Merdian to enter into an agreement with the Illinois Department of Transportation and allocate $655,203 in local matching funds for the construction of a multiuse bikeway path on East Second Street from Broadway to First Avenue (IL Route 40).

City Manager Scott Schumard said the bikeway path is part of a larger roadwork project on Second Street. Schumard said the majority of the path will be funded with IDOT’s Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program grants and the two projects will be bid as one.

“The ITEP grant is to fund the multiuse path, but it requires the roadwork to be done in concert for grading, new curb line and right of way acquisition, so it is bid as one project,” Schumard said. “The roadwork is on Second Street from First Avenue, Route 40, all the way around the bend until it meets back up on Third Street.”

The ITEP grant will reimburse the city for 80% of the bikeway path construction and the city will be responsible for the remaining 20%. Schumard said at the time of the grant application in 2020, the estimated total cost was $1,266,760. The grant would fund $1,011,914, leaving the city to pay $254,846. However, unexpected delays have changed that.

“They anticipate the project to be more than what the original engineers estimated because it’s taken so long for them to approve it,” Schumard said.

The ITEP grant requires a 20% funding match from the city. Delays in approvals outside the city’s control increased project costs due to inflation. The council at its meeting Monday night approved appropriating $655,203, or as much as is needed, to match the required funding to complete the proposed improvements.

“Earlier this year, we were led to believe Second Street was going to be bid in April and built in 2024,” Schumard said. “Then we started getting word of delays in approvals.”

Those delays impacted the city’s ability to schedule as much roadwork as it could have this year. Each year, the city sends a list of streets that need resurfacing and rebuilding to their engineers to prepare bids for the first half of the year.

“We had a small list of roads and alleys we could still afford to do after paying for Second Street,” Schumard said. “When we started getting word of delays in approvals, we weren’t sure if we could add additional roads with this year’s budget or if we would still need this year’s road funds to go toward Second Street, just later in the year.”

Schumard said by the time the city learned the Second Street project would likely be delayed until 2025, allowing them to add more roads to their list of this year’s projects, contractors responding to those bids were already booked and required the city to extend the project’s deadline into 2025 if the city wanted a lower price.

Although the city is responsible for 100% of the Second Street roadwork costs, Schumard said the majority of that project’s cost already is in place.

“It will be a combination of funds from our Motor Fuel Tax Fund, the city’s allotment of federal Surface Transportation Program funds and our local option sales tax,” Schumard said. “I would estimate each will be roughly a third of the funding.”

The state reserves a portion of the Motor Fuel Taxes it collects to distribute to local governments. That money is held in a separate fund under IDOT oversight for use. STU funds are federal funds allocated to state and local municipalities for transportation projects and are under IDOT oversight.

The city is tentatively planning for bidding on the project to go up on Sunday, Nov. 10.

“The 2024 funds for road construction will still be spent,” Schumard said. “The projects and expenditures just won’t show until next summer. Then, next year’s road funds will be used toward the reconstruction of Second Street.”