Galesburg City Council committed matching funds Monday night toward Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) grants for two street projects — finishing the Simmons Street corridor downtown and advancing design work on East Main Street. Both votes were unanimous, 7-0.
Neither resolution commits the city to actually building the projects. They commit the city only to providing required matching funds if the state awards the grants.
ITEP grant applications: what to know
- Council voted 7-0 on both resolutions Monday night, committing the city to matching funds — not to the projects themselves — if the grants are awarded.
- Simmons Street: improvements between Cherry and Prairie streets and between Kellogg and Seminary streets. $2 million total project, with $920,000 sought from ITEP and $1.08 million in local matching funds.
- East Main Street: Phase II design work from Grand Avenue to east of Walnut Street. $1.373 million total, with $350,400 sought from ITEP and $1.0226 million in local matching funds.
- Award announcements for both are expected in spring 2027.
- The city also applied for a competing Highway Safety Improvement Program grant covering the same East Main Street engineering costs; only one of the two could be awarded.
Simmons Street Streetscape
The $2 million Simmons Street project would improve the corridor between Cherry and Prairie streets and between Kellogg and Seminary streets, filling in the segments on either side of a middle stretch the city completed previously. The city is seeking $920,000 from ITEP, with $1.08 million in local matching funds — $680,000 from Surface Transportation Program-Urban funds and $400,000 from Motor Fuel Tax funds.
Director of Public Works Aaron Gavin said the Simmons Street corridor was identified as a priority area in the city’s 2016 Downtown Plan, and the city has already completed related work through the Park Plaza project and the recent Prairie-to-Kellogg stretch.
“We would like to continue that momentum and complete the improvements to the remaining corridor,” Gavin said.
The project would focus on pedestrian improvements, including ADA-compliant sidewalks and lighting, along with aesthetic features similar to those used in the Prairie-to-Kellogg project. The street would also be resurfaced.
Mayor Peter Schwartzman and several council members raised questions Monday about whether the project would include the same style of extended curb “bump-outs” used at intersections in the previously completed middle stretch from Prairie to Kellogg streets. Gavin said the city will consider different approaches depending on each block.
“Each block is unique, so bump-outs may or may not fit at these intersections,” Gavin said. Both Gavin and City Manager Eric Hanson told council Monday that those features would be re-evaluated during the design process.
ITEP is a competitive grant program, and Gavin said this cycle’s increased maximum award amount is expected to make competition even tighter than in past cycles. He said award announcements are anticipated next spring. If awarded, Gavin said preliminary engineering would begin in 2027, with construction targeted for 2028.
East Main Street Improvements
The second resolution covers $1.373 million for Phase II design work on the East Main Street corridor, from Grand Avenue to east of Walnut Street. The city is seeking $350,400 from ITEP, with $1.0226 million in local matching funds — $748,000 from Surface Transportation Program-Urban funds and $274,600 from Motor Fuel Tax funds.
Gavin said the city is applying now, rather than waiting, because ITEP grant cycles only come around every other year.
“We want to continue to make progress on the design for this project, as it will increase our chances in being competitive for future construction funding,” Gavin said.
The project has the same scope as the East Main Street road-diet project the city has previously discussed, and is part of the same overall corridor project currently in Phase I engineering. This application covers the next step, Phase II engineering, which includes finalizing project plans. The project qualifies for ITEP funding because of its planned sidewalk and multi-use path improvements.
Related: Phased construction, three lanes that work: city answers East Main Street’s two biggest fears
The city has also applied for a Highway Safety Improvement Program grant covering the same Phase II engineering costs. Gavin said applying for both simply improves the city’s odds of securing funding, since IDOT administers both programs and would not award both grants for the same costs.
“If funding does not come through from either source, moving the project’s design forward could be delayed unless another source becomes available,” Gavin said.
Gavin said it’s technically possible, though unlikely given how competitive the grant is, for both applications tied to that project to be funded. Award announcements are expected around the same time as the Simmons Street decision, next spring. If funded, Gavin said Phase II engineering would be completed by 2028.
