Niles officials hope a long-planned makeover of Milwaukee Avenue will help spur redevelopment and revitalize commercial areas along the historic route.
The village’s Milwaukee Avenue Beautification Plan, approved in March 2008, calls for a variety of streetscape and safety improvements along the village’s five-mile stretch of Milwaukee. The project is designed to make one of the village’s busiest streets more attractive and a safer road to navigate for pedestrians.
“We realized that Milwaukee Avenue is the gateway to the northwest suburbs, so we need to be taking advantage of all the auto and bus traffic,” Niles Mayor Robert Callero said. “And once we get people here, we want them to enjoy walking down the street and have a nice experience.”
The project’s first phase, expected to cost about $817,000 and set for completion in June, would bring improvements to Milwaukee at the intersections of Harts Road, Touhy Avenue and Waukegan Road, including installation of new brick-paved crosswalks and pedestrian countdown signals, said Steve Vinezeano, Niles assistant village manager.
Vinezeano said the project’s goal is to make the pedestrian voyage across Milwaukee a less-harrowing experience, as records show about 45,000 vehicles travel each day on Milwaukee in Niles.
“We’re trying to get people out of their cars, and to do that we have to make the intersections safer for pedestrians,” he said. “We want to make it very obvious when it’s safe to cross.”
At the intersection of Milwaukee and Touhy, the village plans to install decorative streetlights, benches, fresh greenery and planters. Sidewalks also will be repaved and widened along Milwaukee from Albion Avenue to Neva Avenue, he said.
Attracting more foot traffic to shopping centers and other businesses along Milwaukee Avenue has become especially key in a down economy, he said.
“To improve the situation for the businesses, we have to improve the safety for pedestrians,” Vinezeano said.
The Veterans Memorial Water Fall Plaza near that intersection would also see improvements, such as new decorative lights, planters and a fresh coat of paint on the benches.
Callero said the village began planning for the project more than five years ago and has secured a total of $1.8 million in grant funds toward the project. That includes two grants totaling $1.3 million from the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program, a federal program that provides funding for community projects that improve transportation infrastructure and expand travel choices.
Callero said the village was fortunate to have the Milwaukee Avenue project’s plans in place when ITEP grant funds became available, especially as many communities are struggling to fund such projects.
“We were in the right place at the right time,” he said.
The project’s second phase would bring similar streetscape improvements and upgraded crosswalks to the Milwaukee intersections of Harlem Avenue, Howard Street and Oakton Street and at the entrance to Jerry’s Fruit Market, which is often bustling with vehicle and pedestrian traffic at 7901 N. Milwaukee Ave.
The plan also calls for decorative fencing to be installed along Milwaukee in the areas of Howard Street and Harlem Avenue.
Vinezeano said he expected engineering work on the second phase to be completed next year.
Once the full project is complete, each Milwaukee Avenue intersection in Niles should have an updated, uniform look that will help motorists and pedestrians identify the village, Vinezeano said.
“You should be able to start at Albion and end at Greenwood and know that you’ve been through Niles,” he said.
Louella Preston, a 23-year village trustee and chairwoman of the Milwaukee Avenue Beautification Committee, said she hoped street enhancements would bring a much-needed boost to existing businesses along Milwaukee and spur redevelopment where needed.
“We’re hoping this project will bring Milwaukee Avenue into the 21st century,” Preston said.
A Niles resident for more than 30 years, Preston said Milwaukee Avenue “has been a part of my life for many years." The village’s lack of a train station has made Milwaukee a main access point for many traveling between Niles and the city of Chicago, she said.
“It truly is the gateway to the village,” she said.
Callero said village officials would continue to seek grant funds for future stages of the project, although he said securing money for projects could be difficult in a tough economy.
“We want people to know that this will be an ongoing project,” he said.
Jason Lee, Triblocal.com reporter
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