The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s board of commissioners earlier this month voted to award $1,075,000 to the village of Brookfield to help fund a storm sewer project scheduled for 2024.

The new storm sewer, which will run beneath Burlington Avenue from Elm Avenue east to Salt Creek, is part of a series of construction projects along the entire length of Burlington Avenue scheduled to begin in late 2023 and continue in phases through most of 2024.

The total cost of the storm sewer project alone is pegged at $1.8 million, with the village on the hook for funding the balance. Village Manager Timothy Wiberg said Brookfield intends to seek additional grant funding to help bring that number down.

“We’ll try to work with our local contacts at the West Central Municipal Conference for [federal] funds to get that cost down further,” said Wiberg, who credited Village Engineer Derek Treichel for the MWRD grant.

“It was his idea, his application,” Wiberg said. “I was very impressed on how quick the MWRD responded to us.”

Treichel submitted the application to the MWRD in January, asking for funds the agency had set aside for “shovel ready” projects. Brookfield’s storm sewer project was one of six approved for a total of $19.3 million in grant funding at the MWRD Board of Commissioners meeting on April 6.

According to Treichel, the village will approach the WCMC in late 2023 or early 2024 for contingency funding for the balance of the storm sewer cost. While the village has been awarded contingency funds in the past, they may or may not be available next year.

The new storm sewer will range in diameter from 18 to 46 inches and will discharge into Salt Creek via a new outfall. That storm water discharge will also route through a water quality treatment structure, which will separate out solid materials, to be located under Burlington Avenue at Grove Avenue.

The storm sewer project will be put out to bid in late 2023 along with a major reconstruction/resurfacing project for Burlington Avenue. Both projects will be done in phases throughout the 2024 construction season.

Prior to work commencing next March, according to Treichel, village officials will host a meeting for residents and business owners along the street to get a sense of the phasing and disruption.

The largest disruption will be to the section of Burlington Avenue between Prairie and Maple avenues, which overlaps with the storm sewer project and includes a full reconstruction of Burlington Avenue, which will be widened by 8 feet in that stretch.

Burlington Avenue from Deyo Avenue to DuBois Boulevard will also be reconstructed, but it will not be widened. Plans do call, however, for realigning the DuBois/Burlington intersection to remove the island from the street in front of the Congress Park Metra station.

The village has already received $2.25 million in federal funding through the WCMC for the road reconstruction portion of the project.

 New section of water main

Prior to the sewer/road work commencing in 2024, the village plans to install a new water main under the south sidewalk of Burlington Avenue to DuBois Boulevard and  extend it under the east sidewalk of the 4000 block of DuBois Boulevard to Ogden Avenue.

The village has applied for a low-interest loan from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to fund the $655,000 project, and Brookfield should hear whether or not they’re receiving a loan next month.

If the village obtains an IEPA loan, Treichel said the water main project could start as early as October 2023.

Treichel said he has had no update from the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad on when they might begin reconstruction of the retaining wall on the south side of their right-of-way for the Congress Park Metra platform.

The railroad had indicated last year that they planned to commence work in 2023.