Wheeling outlines $23.8M 2026 capital program; priorities include streetlight replacements, stormwater and bike path

At the Nov. 17 meeting the Village of Wheeling reviewed its five‑year Capital Improvement Plan and highlighted planned 2026 projects and funding sources.

Village Engineer Kyle Getzelman said the proposed 2026 capital budget is about $23.8 million, roughly $1.6 million more than 2025. Staff reviewed 2025 accomplishments—2.76 miles of pavement at about $1.79 million, village hall parking-lot resurfacing (~$366,000), a new village-hall diesel generator (~$316,000), replacement of the police roof (~$1.4 million) and completion of phase 2 of the South Downhir storm-sewer project.

Key 2026 projects and budgets called out by staff include a $522,000 streetlight pole replacement program (converting concrete poles to aluminum), a $175,000 school‑zone safety study funded in part by an Invest in Cook grant and in collaboration with Buffalo Grove, a $125,000 parking‑lot light upgrade, an expanded surface‑treatment program, and a motor‑fuel‑tax street improvement program budgeted at about $2 million to resurface roughly three miles of road and remedy ADA deficiencies.

Stormwater and TIF projects include a $2.2 million water‑main loop (River Mill to Sumac) in the Southeast TIF, a $125,000 evaluation of an equalizer pipe between Echo Lake and Ridgefield Pond, and a Town Center TIF stream‑bank stabilization project budgeted at $2.6 million with an IEPA grant expected to reimburse $1.63 million. The presentation also highlighted a North TIF diversionary‑channel bike path (just over a mile) with an engineer’s estimate around $1 million; costs rose from earlier estimates because the scope now includes a pedestrian footbridge and professional services.

Trustees asked about the path’s life expectancy, connections to regional trails (it will connect toward the Des Plaines River Trail and the Northgate Trail), whether it ties to park‑district paths (it does not), and details about stormwater projects such as a Jackson Drive drain improvement that will be scoped as part of the forthcoming stormwater master plan.

Staff summarized sidewalk maintenance policy: inspectors identify trip hazards between one‑quarter inch and three‑quarters inch that are ground; deficiencies greater than three‑quarters inch are usually slated for replacement as part of the multi‑year program that rotates through five village zones and addresses roughly 350 trip hazards per year.

What’s next: CIP projects will be advanced through normal design and procurement processes; some projects rely on grants and TIF funding and will require further design and easement acquisition.