The city of Galesburg plans to go after a second federal grant that could lead to the replacement of the antiquated South Street underpass.
Aldermen on Monday unanimously approved a resolution of support and commitment of local funds for a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant Program application for a project planning study at the South Street railroad underpass and Mulberry Street crossing.
The potential changes that will be a part of the planning study include closing the Mulberry Street crossing and replacing the South Street underpass with a new underpass that does not have a height restriction. This would allow for the passage of taller emergency vehicles and larger trucks.
City administration also contends straightening the underpass to be in line with the current South Street alignment and making changes to the intersection with Seminary Street would would improve safety.
Accommodation for pedestrians and bicyclists would also be included in the study.
The RAISE Grant application comes after the city failed to land a Railroad Crossing Elimination Program application to the Federal Railroad Administration.
Aaron Gavin, interim director of Public Works, tells WGIL, “They just recently announced the selections for the FY23-24 RCE Grant Program, and unfortunately it looks like our project was not selected, If we are unsuccessful with the RAISE grant, we may decide to reapply for the RCE program in a future funding cycle as sometimes projects that aren’t selected initially can get funded in future attempts.”
Gavin said the RAISE application would be “very similar” to the Railroad Crossing Elimination Program application.
“The application is for the planning work only and the scope of work and improvements we proposed to study in the RCE grant are going to be the same for RAISE,” Gavin said.
“Since what we proposed originally for RCE is also an eligible project for RAISE, we wanted to take advantage of the work that we had already done and repackage it for RAISE.”
The city is partnering with BNSF to complete the application for the planning project. BNSF has agreed to use their engineering consulting firm, at their cost, to complete and submit the application. The total estimated cost of the Project Planning study is $1,683,988. If awarded, the RAISE Program would cover 80% of the cost of the study and the city and BNSF would split the 20% local match. The city’s contribution would be $168,399.
According to Gavin, the South Street underpass was built in 1912.
City Manager Eric Hanson previously told WGIL, “We are excited to work with BNSF to determine if and how best to improve the safety, functionality, and accessibility of the corridor by designing and constructing an underpass that provides unimpeded access for all vehicles, including emergency vehicles as well as pedestrians south of Main Street.
“This is just the first phase of what we hope will be a lengthy process that ends with constructing a new underpass that will remove a dangerous intersection while improving access for all.”
