Lisle trustees generally back Main Street streetscape plan, ask designers to pare costs and refine details

The Village of Lisle Committee of the Whole reviewed a final streetscape report from design engineer Civiltech on Monday, discussing pavers, festoon lighting, an outdoor fireplace, crosswalk treatments, road resurfacing and traffic signal upgrades for Main Street.

Public Works Director Elias told trustees the firm updated its September concept based on prior feedback and that staff needs timely guidance to finish contract documents for a 2026 construction bid: "The only thing I was trying to impress upon is if we wait too long to get that feedback, we don't have enough time to put together the final contract documents to get them all ready to package, ready to go, bid them out, ready for construction in 2026." He said the pavers are intended to create a five-foot “furniture zone” for restaurant seating while preserving a six-foot pedestrian access route to meet ADA requirements.

Trustees generally signaled support for a designated furniture zone and for including pavers in the plan, while asking staff and the consultant to identify value-engineered options. Trustee Duffy said he favored flexible, lower-cost alternatives such as freestanding planters: "I think we could do instead is do freestanding, stand alone, those large concrete flower planters... as opposed to the permanency of the pavers." Trustee McGovern and Trustee Grahl (listed in the meeting transcript as Grahl) praised the aesthetic and functional roles of pavers but asked for cost reductions; McGovern suggested using fewer colors or simplified patterns to lower estimates.

Several trustees raised durability and maintenance concerns. Director Elias said staff believes the proposed paver system will be manageable though not as durable as plain concrete: "In terms of durability, is it as durable as only concrete? Probably not. But... it's not like we're gonna have to be out there, you know, multiple times a week resetting pavers." Trustee Olsen asked about stamped concrete as a lower-cost alternative; Elias cautioned that stamped concrete is difficult to match after utility repairs.

On festoon lighting, Elias summarized three options and approximate costs, and recommended locating lights over the fountain to avoid appearing to favor one business: "If it's above the fountain, it's a community space, it's not beneficial to one business over another." Trustees largely supported the fountain location and asked the consultant to explore extension of lighting toward Garden Walk and Burlington to enhance downtown visibility.

Trustees also discussed an outdoor fireplace, with Elias noting an estimated cost of about $25,000 for the appliance but additional costs for modifying existing seat walls and for bringing a gas line if the fireplace is added after initial construction. Trustee Simon said the Burlington/Main location would better connect the north and south sides of downtown.

On crosswalks and road resurfacing, Elias recommended resurfacing the roadway as part of the streetscape effort and advised against paver crosswalks because of heavy vehicle wear and staging impacts during installation; he offered thermoplastic treatments as an alternative while retaining MUTCD-compliant white striping. Trustees prioritized safety and minimizing disruption to businesses during construction.

Elias also proposed signal upgrades at Main & Burlington and Main & School to add pedestrian countdown timers and accessible pedestrian features; trustees supported including those upgrades as safety improvements if budget permits.

Directives and next steps: trustees asked staff to give the consultant the feedback gathered at the meeting, to return with value-engineered paver options and cost refinements during phase 2 engineering, and to discuss timing and business impacts during construction planning. No final design decisions were voted on at the meeting.

The meeting concluded with the routine adjournment vote.

Ending: Staff will deliver refined design options and updated cost estimates to the board for further direction before final contract documents are prepared for bidding.