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St. Charles Mayor Lora Vitek announced during last week’s City Council meeting that the First Street Plaza will be ready and open to visitors by next month.
The First Street redevelopment project is turning a section of First Street into a walkable plaza with access to the Main Street Bridge, the riverwalk and downtown businesses. The project has been in the works since 2020 and city officials are eyeing a Jan. 24, 2024, ribbon-cutting as construction nears completion.
Public works assistant director Chris Adesso said he is confident the plaza will be substantially complete by mid-January and ready in time for the ribbon-cutting.
Work on the first phase was completed in the spring of 2022. The first phase included building a retention wall along the Fox River bank and reconstructing the lot of the demolished Manor Restaurant.
The second phase includes tearing up the First Street roadway just north of the parking garage entrance to make way for a pedestrian walkway that will extend north to the sidewalk at Main Street (Route 64). The section of First Street from Indiana Avenue north to the parking garage entrance will remain open to vehicles.
The plaza was designed by Serena Sturm Architects Ltd. of Chicago. It is a large egg-shaped plaza surrounded by a solar panel covered trellis, a walkway with access to the riverwalk, public art installations, charging kiosks, landscaping and lighting.
The new addition will add to the existing outdoor dining area between First Street and Route 31 and be a hub for shopping and outdoor dining in the city’s downtown. It also will be used for city events, seasonal markets and holiday displays.
Adesso said benches, charging kiosks and the riverwalk trellis have been installed and they will be finishing the brick paving and landscaping before the opening. Some lighting and electrical components have been delayed, so final touches will be completed in the spring.
“Anytime you have a project you’ve worked on for the past several months, to see it come to fruition is exciting,” Adesso said. “It’s been a fun project to work on and we’re excited to get it wrapped up and get it open.”
The development is a collaborative effort between the city and the St. Charles Initiative, an advisory committee of community leaders.
Total project cost is estimated at $6,425,748. Phase one included site acquisition, design and foundation construction and cost $2,042,707. The current – and final – phase will include all construction, management and furnishings until the project is complete and will cost an estimated $4,384,041.
The St. Charles Initiative is accepting donations and offering sponsorship opportunities for those who wish to help the development by buying naming rights or funding furnishing elements. Additions made possible by sponsors will be outfitted with plaques recognizing the donors.