Kane County unveils multi‑year pavement management plan; Geneva Construction bid below budget for Judicial Center work

Sean Benson, civil engineer with White and Company, presented the Kane County Administration Committee with the county's first formal pavement management plan on May 20, calling it a five‑year program through 2030 that inventories pavement condition and sequences maintenance and rehabilitation.

Benson said the plan identified failing pavement areas on the Judicial Center campus and laid out a phased maintenance schedule. "We put together a pavement management plan in March 2024," Benson said, and described the primary scope for this summer as grind‑and‑overlay rehabilitation across several campus lots, replacement of failing storm structures and targeted driveway widening at a narrow two‑way section that Benson said is currently about 14 feet and would be expanded to roughly "22 and a half feet." Alternate bid items included adding roughly 21 spaces near sheriff parking and 26 spaces in the south lot to relieve congestion.

Benson said the five‑year program included a budget figure of $1,650,000 for the planned work; the competitive bids for this phase came in at approximately $1,034,000. He told the committee the bid process produced eight responses. "With the order of magnitude of this project and completing at the same time, there's definitely a big cost savings for the county to complete that now," Benson said, adding that deferred maintenance would likely cost more later.

Roger Fonstock, the county's executive director for IT and building management, said staff recommended awarding the contract for the Judicial Center pavement improvement project to Geneva Construction Company and that the work would be completed during the summer construction season. "The work would be completed this summer, and we're recommending approval for this budgeted capital project," Fonstock said.

Committee members asked for up‑to‑date photographs and condition data given that some assessment photos dated from November 2023. Benson said the assessment remains valid and that conditions typically continue to deteriorate from year to year; he reiterated that earlier identification of the worst areas made the project a priority.

Why this matters: The county manages roughly 27 buildings and nearly 1,000,000 square feet of space; failing pavement at the Judicial Center campus has produced safety hazards, potholes and storm structure failures. Completing a coordinated phase of work this summer would reset the maintenance schedule and relieve future deferred‑maintenance pressure, staff said.

Outcome: County staff recommended awarding the contract for the Judicial Center pavement project to Geneva Construction and requested committee approval to proceed. The contract is budgeted as a capital expense in the county's capital program.