Many La Grange Streets Deteriorating: Study

LA GRANGE, IL – La Grange should spend up to $4 million a year to fix an increasing number of deteriorating streets, a study recommends.

This week, La Grange released an engineering study on its 49 miles of streets. The Village Board discussed it at Monday's meeting.

According to the Baxter & Woodman study, 50 percent of La Grange's streets rated good or better. That's down from 62 percent in 2016 and 82 percent in 2011.

In the last six years, the village has reduced the number of poor and failed streets to 7 percent, from 15 percent.

But during that time, the number of streets rated fair surged to 43 percent, from 20 percent, according to the study.

Baxter & Woodman said the backlog in major maintenance is now $14.9 million, down from $18.1 million in 2016.

That reduction is largely because of the city's effort to improve poor and failed streets.

"(T)his has created an increase in the number of streets that are now in fair condition needing at least a resurfacing," the study said. "Without a significant investment to address these fair streets in the near future, they will continue to deteriorate and costs will exponentially increase."

The firm recommended the village spend $3 million to $4 million a year to keep the streets on a 15- to 20-year cycle.

"While this sounds like an ambitious budget for the Village, these (ratings) highlight the point that the average condition of the Village streets are deteriorating each year, and reversing the trend will require a significant investment in the Village's street system," the firm said.

During the meeting, Richard Colby, the village's public works director, said La Grange this year launched a new street maintenance program involving larger equipment.

The goal, he said, was to extend the life of the village's streets. He said the village hopes to make similar investments to find "that right economy and that right balance."

"We are working on the outcomes of this report to look at the level of street patching," Colby said.