On August 30, the United Garden Hills Neighborhood Association’s Facebook page called for the arming of neighborhood residents:
“We can all safely say that our infrastructure is essential to keep our children safe. When it is neglected our children are in harm’s way every day!!”
This wasn’t the first, second, or even third time that Garden Hills residents had expressed concerns about infrastructure and safety. In fact, it has been going on for years. Garden Hills is one of the most struggling neighborhoods in Champaign, with frequent flooding problems, a lack of street lighting and, more recently, an increase in crime rates.
In June, the city granted $25 million through the American Rescue Plan (ARP), an economic relief plan for COVID-19, disbursing emergency funds. Half of the money has already been given to the city, while the other half will be received next year. Kay Ness, the city’s chief financial officer, said the ARP program was a “missing key piece” for action in Garden Hills.
When Garden Hills was initially built, it was outside the city’s jurisdiction, which had a significant impact on the regulations to which the neighborhood was subject.
Tina Ansong, associate planner in the city’s Department of Planning and Development, said.
The two efforts, a sanitation project to target flooding, and a lighting project to make streets safer, have their own schedule, budgets, and design. The first phase of the drainage project has already been completed: creation of a green space for the installation of holding ponds. The city worked with residents to demolish properties that were frequently flooded to make way for holding ponds.
“Funding the U.S. Bailout Act is truly a game-changer for this project’s timeline,” said Lacey Rains, senior planner with the city’s Department of Planning and Development. “We did a massive outreach in the community this summer in August to try to figure out what the main concerns of the community are, and [water, sewer and storm sewer infrastructure] He was one of the best vote-getters.”
Phase two of the project includes the installation of sewer improvements, holding sump and large pipes down streets, including Hedge Road. The main streets of the neighborhood will be reconstructed with underground connections to the basin, as well as the reconstruction of sidewalks, sidewalks and gutters. The detention basin design includes park-like amenities, such as benches and walking paths.
According to Nice, the cost of this phase of the project is approximately $22.8 million. This phase is expected to be completed by December 2023.
“For infrastructure projects of this size, the design work typically takes about two years at least,” Ness said. “We are trying to expedite that as much as possible because we know the needs within Garden Hills.”
Phase III, the final step in stopping flooding in Garden Hills, is installing large sewage lines to carry pond water and additional rainwater and direct it to the basin. This phase is expected to amount to about $17 million. This phase is expected to be completed by December 2028.
In the 1980s and 1990s, regulations from Illinois got stronger to begin to dilute some of the rainwater, rather than letting it “seep onto neighbors’ properties,” according to Rains.
Although the ARP program is driving the speed of this project, which contributes $5 million, most of the money comes from the Rainwater Capture Fund, which is collected through residents’ stormwater utility fees. Sales and property taxes also flow into the rainwater retention fund.
“The stormwater utility fee was really an opportunity, ahead of the city, under pressure from residents, to finally be able to get the infrastructure needed to build, and everyone knew there was a need to build, and retrofit in neighborhoods because it created a source of revenue,” said senior planner Raines. “So, before that, the city was relying on traditional capital improvement planning, trying to get federal and state grants.”
Lighting has always been an issue in Garden Hills. Residents expressed fears that a lack of street lighting might play a role in increased crime and fears for the safety of their children while walking on the streets alone.
Enter the Garden Hills Street Lighting Project. Designed for the installation of pole street lights and LED pedestrian lights at all street intersections and intermediate locations, this project will provide a total of 119 street lights. Construction could begin in the summer of 2023, as the project is currently up for bid for an engineering firm.
“The lighting starts up faster because it doesn’t require a long design period,” Ness said.
The street lighting project is expected to cost between $6 million and $8 million.
In addition, the City’s Safety Lighting Energy Efficiency Program, also known as SLEEP, will provide Garden Hills residents with the installation of any or all of the following: patio lighting poles, outdoor entry point lamp, and video doorbells.
“If you live in Garden Hills, and you want that, there will be a technician who will be working in the city, who will basically coordinate this effort for this program to register people. And to make sure it is installed,” Rains said.
Raines said the city does not have any access to the footage or the Ring account (the front door camera and doorbell). The ring material is the personal property of the residents of the house, should they decide to install the security camera.
These joint ventures hope to alleviate some of the long-standing problems in Garden Hills, and possibly reduce crime rates.
“I think it’s important to realize (when) we’re talking about crime in general that it’s two-sided,” Associate Planner Ansong said. “There are studies that show there is some reduction in crime when lighting is improved, but there is also a social aspect at play in climate violence as well.”
Back in August, the city council conducted a public input survey in which Champaign residents were able to express where they thought the ARP money should go. The most prominent option was community violence intervention programmes, with a majority of 68.8% voting in favour.
Ansong and Rains are working on a strategic action plan for the neighborhood to complement infrastructure improvements.
“This is where the neighborhood plan gives us the opportunity to have these larger conversations about what more can be done to use infrastructure as a catalyst for change, and then support that change,” said Rains.
Diana Angel / For CU-CitizenAccess