First, I want to thank all of our residents, businesses, and visitors for their patience while the City has moved through the current phase of the Court Street reconstruction project. It is multimillion dollar undertaking that has included thousands of hours of work from our staff and contractors, and the City is fully aware it came with hardships and inconveniences. As you have all seen in recent weeks, the paving work is largely complete (if not fully complete by the time this article reaches you), and we will be wrapping up the rest of the project throughout December. We hope the newly constructed thoroughfare will bring renewed investment to our community as well as remind everyone that, although these projects do take a lot of time, we do get them done.

Here are a few words about the project I wanted to relay from our city engineer:

The Court Street Rehabilitation project is a multi-year, multi-phase endeavor that the City of Pekin began in 2021 with the first section between Veterans Drive and Valle Vista Boulevard. This first section cost approximately $5 million, $2 million of which was paid for by a grant that staff was able to obtain through DCEO. 

Currently, the second section of the project from Valle Vista to Stadium Drive is very close to completion. Costing slightly over $10 million dollars with a $1.7 million grant, this section of the project included water main replacement, storm sewer replacement, all new curb & gutter, and all new sidewalks and ADA ramps. New traffic signals were added at Stadium Drive to make the entrance to the High School safer for drivers and pedestrians. Full depth concrete patching of the bad areas of pavement and a two-layer, structural asphalt overlay will keep the driving surface smooth for years to come, which was a massive improvement for Pekin’s primary business corridor. One of the last steps in the current construction project was manhole adjustments, where the contractor installed and poured concrete around sewer manholes to the exact elevation of the pavement. New pavement markings are the final step, which will allow the road to be fully re-opened to the public in early December of 2024. 

The final sections of the project are between Stadium Drive & 10th Street and between 10th Street and 8th Street. The total cost of the remaining projects is estimated at $14 million, $3 million of which will be paid for by a grant for the 10th Street to 8th Street section. The remaining two sections of the project will be considered separately because they include different types of work. The section from 8th to 10th Street is a complete rebuild, with all new sidewalks, curb, and concrete pavement. The section from 10th to Stadium Drive will be a structural mill and asphalt overlay, similar to the section completed in 2024. The most noticeable change will be a new alignment from Stadium to 14th, which will push the road towards Mineral Springs Park in order to widen the sidewalks along the existing retaining wall.

Grants totaling $6.7 million on all three sections were one of the primary reasons that the City was able to continue moving forward on this massive undertaking. The remainder of the project was funded primarily through TIF, BDD, and motor fuel tax dollars. The City of Pekin is so excited to complete these improvements and give the community a project to be proud of for years to come.

December 1: Pekin Winter Wonderland Festival

December 6: Christmas on Court / Santa Visits Downtown Pekin

December 7: Sports Cards n’ Collector’s Show

December 8: Stretch & Fetch Puppy Yoga for TAPS

December 10: Santa Visits Downtown Pekin

December 13: Friends in Harmony – Celebrating a Bicentennial Christmas

December 14: Friends in Harmony – Celebrating a Bicentennial Christmas

December 17: Santa Visits Downtown Pekin

December 18: German Christmas Dinner

December 21: Breakfast with Santa

December 26: Pekin Holiday Tournament

Visit DiscoverPekin.com for a full, updated list of community events