Mount Prospect board approves Melas-to-Meadows pedestrian bridge; award moves to IDOT for contracting

The Mount Prospect Village Board voted 4–3 on May 19 to concur with staff and IDOT’s low-bid recommendation for the Melas-to-Meadows pedestrian bridge, authorizing the mayor to sign the intergovernmental agreements needed to move the project into construction.

Village Director of Public Works Sean Dorsey told the board the project — a custom pedestrian and bicycle bridge spanning the Union Pacific Railroad and Northwest Highway that will include long ADA-compliant ramps and a steel superstructure with a concrete deck — has been under study for more than a decade. Bids opened April 24; Dorsey said the low bid from Dunnet Bay Construction Company came in at $10,744,242.85, roughly $2 million higher than staff’s estimate.

The board’s approval follows a funding package Dorsey described as composed primarily of external grants: approximately $10.16 million in combined state, regional and federal grants, including shared STP funds administered by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), an Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) award and other state-grade-crossing funds. With those grants applied, Dorsey said the village’s construction share is approximately $1.32 million, representing about 12 percent of the construction cost; construction engineering costs were identified in the agenda materials at about $856,000 with a small local share.

Why it mattered: supporters framed the bridge as a safety and connectivity project that will link south and north Mount Prospect for pedestrians and bicyclists and provide a dedicated, grade-separated crossing at a spot where residents — including parents and school commuters — have reportedly crossed busy lanes and tracks. Opponents questioned whether the structure is a community "need" versus a large "want," raised liability and maintenance concerns, and criticized the level of resident outreach conducted during project development.

"We're getting this significant bridge that traverses a major roadway and a railroad track," Mayor Paul Hofert said in support of the recommendation, adding that most of the cost is grant-funded and that the village’s local share is modest relative to the project’s scale. Dorsey said staff had pursued funding from a variety of sources and secured an additional roughly $2.19 million in CMAP STP shared urban funds after the low bid was received.

Trustee Bill Grossi, who voted against the motion, said he judged the project a "want" rather than a "need," noted the absence of a history of serious incidents at the specific crossing, and warned that the bridge’s height and long circular ramps may create opportunities for risky behavior, vandalism and maintenance burdens. "I believe we're going to have more [accidents] as a result of building the bridge," Grossi said.

Trustee Beth DiPrima and Trustee Dante also voted no, saying they worried about scale, potential misuse by e-scooters and skateboarders, questions about whether nearby residents received adequate direct notification, and the absence of more extensive needs studies or open houses earlier in the process. DiPrima said the village should revisit outreach policies for major projects.

Trustees Matuszak and Gens, who voted yes, and others praised public works staff for obtaining grant funding and argued that rejecting the award would forfeit grants that would be reallocated elsewhere. Trustee Matuszak noted similar regional projects with taller profiles and said he had not found examples of recurring safety incidents on comparable bridges.

Public comment echoed the split: multiple residents thanked staff for grant work and said they would use the bridge for safer walking and cycling, while others cited survey results and personal observations that suggested low expected use and urged caution on liability and noise mitigation during construction.

The vote and next steps: the motion to concur with staff and IDOT’s award passed 4–3 (Yes: Mayor Paul Hofert, Trustees Matuszak, Sekitelli and Gens; No: Trustees Grossi, Dante and DiPrima). Dorsey said, pending IDOT’s formal execution of the award, IDOT will sign contracts and schedule a village preconstruction meeting with the contractor in June; staff anticipated work could begin in July and that the project could be complete by the end of 2027.

The board’s action authorized the mayor to sign IDOT joint funding and local public agency engineering services agreements necessary to advance the construction phase. Board members said they expect staff to pursue construction-phase mitigations (noise control during pile driving, inspection schedules and field adjustments) and to return to the board if substantial change orders or additional local funding are needed.