Politics & Government

Deteriorating Bridge Moves Closer to Replacement

Raupp Boulevard Bridge is slated for replacement in 2014.

Raupp Boulevard Bridge came a step closer to being replaced last week, when Buffalo Grove officials entered an engineering agreement. 

The bridge, which goes over Buffalo Creek, is on Raupp Boulevard, 600 feet south of Lake-Cook Road. Its superstructure was determined in 2010 to be in a state of “advanced deterioration” by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Village officials gave their consent last week for engineering firm Baxter & Woodman to design a new bridge. Eighty percent of the cost of the design work will be covered by a federal grant, leaving $23,971 as the village’s cost. The grant is provided through the Federal Highway Bridge Program, which provides funds based on bridges’ efficiency ratings.

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The actual construction project later will be opened to bidders.

Raupp Boulevard Bridge was built in 1967, and was rehabbed in 1995. According to a 2011 memo from Village Manager Dane Bragg, examinations of the bridge by local and state authorities determined the structure “will ultimately fail, mainly due to corrosion of the steel structural elements in the bridge.”

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The replacement process began two years ago, when the village contracted with Baxter & Woodman to complete preliminary engineering work.

Construction of the new bridge is expected to begin next year and will result in a temporary road closure. Public Works Director Greg Boysen said the work will be completed before the 2014 Buffalo Grove Days festival.


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