Congratulations to DuPage County and the Village of Bensenville for winning the Illinois Section ASCE Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award for the Redmond Reservoir Expansion. ERA is extremely proud to have been able to work with such talented staff and be a part of this unique project that reduced both urban and regional flooding. The creativity of the project team and local leaders to make this project happen was second to none. Congrats on a well-deserved award!

The Sycamore Park District Golf Course continues to be improved each year. The upgraded pedestrian bridge at Hole 15, designed by ERA, has officially been placed. The bridge spans the Kishwaukee River and serves as a connection between the tee box and green. Earlier this fall, Sycamore Park District hired Alliance Contractors to perform the bridge and path improvements with construction observation performed by ERA. ​

​ERA donated to and provided drone coverage of the installation for a new 80-foot flagpole for the Bolingbrook Park District. The new flagpole is located at the Park District’s Annerino Community Center along Frontage Road.

​ERA assisted Upland Design Ltd and Batavia Park District in upgrading the basketball court, softball and baseball fields, paths, drainage, and ADA compliance at Big Woods Park. The Park District contracted with Integral Construction to complete all improvements this summer and fall. The park is looking ready for action!

​The ERA-designed parking lot, sidewalk, curb, drainage, and entrance improvements at Sunset Community Center are well on their way. Geneva Park District hired Geneva Construction this fall to construct the improvements, with construction observation by ERA's talented staff.

​ERA sponsored a hole for the Illinois Association of County Engineers (IACE) District 5 Scholarship Golf Outing at Lincolnshire Fields Country Club in Champaign on Monday. It was beautiful weather for golf and a successful outing. Over $3,500 was raised for scholarships that IACE provides for civil engineering students at the U of I, Parkland College, Heartland College, and Danville Area Community College. 

It was a privilege to host Jennifer Ray, an Environmental and Ecological Engineering student at Purdue University, for a week to job shadow the various departments at ERA. Job shadowing allows her the opportunity to align academic pursuits with her career goals. One of her tasks was to suit up in waders and assist the structural department in completing a special feature inspection of the Mack Road bridge over the West Branch of the DuPage River.

Jennifer also completed a walkthrough inspection of a commercial/residential development project in Warrenville focusing on erosion and sediment control onsite. Our environmental engineers discussed the importance of tying together abiotic/non-environmental projects with biological systems for water quality and natural habitat improvement, some benefits of native stormwater systems versus older styles of basin construction (concrete/turf), and the benefits realized by native systems.

In addition, Jennifer learned about what is involved in our Parks and Recreation group projects. Our engineers showed her some example plan sets and explained the services we provide including geometry, grading, and utilities. Important project tasks including permitting, storm sewer and detention design, wetlands, and floodplains were also discussed.
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We enjoyed having Jennifer on board with us for a week of job shadowing. Good Luck at Purdue this year!

The weather this week has been perfect for annual vegetation monitoring visits. We captured some photos of the beautiful plants and wildlife on our most recent field outing. If you are having trouble meeting performance criteria for permit sign off or need a plan to maintain your naturalized area, our environmental team can help! ​

​ERA’s project inspections frequently take our engineers to interesting and fun places, including Quarry Lake in Naperville. Our project managers used the Naperville Park District’s paddleboats to complete an inspection under the Eagle Street pedestrian crossing. This photo also shows the Moser Tower, which ERA is beginning preliminary design phase services on to complete a variety of repairs and improvements. Consider visiting this spot in Naperville for some outdoor fun this weekend!