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TO: Mayor John Laesch and City Council
FROM: Tim Weidner, P.E., Engineering Coordinator
DATE: December 8, 2025
SUBJECT:
A Resolution authorizing the execution of an Engineering Services Agreement with HR Green, Inc. in the not to exceed amount of $74,304.08 by encumbering $80,000 of Ward funds for Phase 1 Preliminary Engineering support on the 2025 Safe Routes to School projects.
PURPOSE:
This is a Resolution to approve the above referenced Engineering Services Agreement.
BACKGROUND:
The City applied for Safe Routes to School (SRTS) federal funding in October 2025 at locations requested by several Aldermen. The SRTS grant program funds various infrastructure improvements to encourage walking and biking to school. The projects are located in School Districts 129 (West Aurora), 131 (East Aurora), 204 (Indian Prairie), and 308 (Oswego) across Wards 1, 4, 6, 9, and 10. Grant awards are scheduled to be announced in Spring 2026.
The grant will cover 100% of eligible construction and construction engineering costs up to the award amount, with a maximum funding cap of $250,000 per school district. Some projects applied for funding up to the cap; others applied for a lesser amount based on an engineering estimate of the project cost.
The grant requires all federal funds to be obligated within 18 months of award announcement. Because these are federal funds, the projects must go through the full IDOT environmental review process. With the typical State review times and local level of effort for this, preliminary engineering must begin now ahead of award announcements to stay on track to meet the deadline.
DISCUSSION:
The City will lead the Phase 1 Preliminary Engineering effort in-house, but requires a consultant for several tasks including surveying, environmental research, and some geometrics. HR Green is the most qualified consultant to perform the drafting as they have performed several of these hybrid-type City-led design projects in recent years. Using ...
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