Colored LED lights for viaduct, hanging planters, bump-outs among 45th Ward budget items

The following items will be on the 45th Ward participatory budget ballot:

Colored LED lights under the Milwaukee Avenue and Kennedy Expressway viaduct at $140,000 or $240,000, pedestrian bump-out at McVicker and Bryn Mawr avenues at $70,000, lobby lighting and sidewalk repairs at the Jefferson Park Library at $175,000, pedestrian bump-out at Dakin and Lamon avenues at $30,000 and pedestrian bump-out on Avondale Avenue to access the Gladstone Park Metra Station at $70,000.

Also, mid-block bump-out on Higgins Avenues to access Jefferson Memorial Park at $65,000, sidewalk repairs throughout the ward at $150,000, curbs repairs throughout the ward at $150,000, hanging planters in the  business corridors at$25,000 and 17 decorative trash cans throughout the ward at $26,000.

Fencing and lighting near the Gladstone Park station at $70,000, outdoor adult exercise equipment at Wilson and Austin-Foster parks at $50,000, new signage for the Knox Industrial Corridor and the Mayfair Metra Station and other improvements at $35,000 and a marquee or decorative sign at Jefferson Memorial Park at $100,000.

Another proposal calls for the installation of neighborhood greenways on Austin Avenue between the Gladstone Park station and Indian Road Park and along Ainslie Street and Leclaire Avenue between the Jefferson Park CTA Terminal and the North Branch Trail in Forest Glen at $90,000. The greenways would serve as designated bike routes, with increased signage and roadway markings and new bike lanes where feasible.

The winning projects would be funded from the ward’s annual allocation of $1.32 million of discretionary funds, which are intended for capital improvements. Usually the top four vote-getters are funded, but the number can vary depended on the cost of each project.

In past votes, about 550,000 the funds were used for side-street resurfacing, about $450,000 for a variety of neighborhood projects such as bike lanes and trees, and about $300,000 for emergencies and cost over-runs.

Ward residents age 14 and older can vote between Monday, Oct. 16, and Friday, Oct. 27, at the ward office, 4754 N. Milwaukee Ave. Plans also will be announced this week for online voting.

In addition, satellite voting will be take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, at the Jefferson Park Library, 5363 W. Lawrence Ave., 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 22, at the Independence Park Farmers’ Market, 3945 N. Springfield Ave., 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 22 at the Jefferson Park Sunday Market, 4822 N. Long Ave., 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Congregational Church of Jefferson Park, 5320 W. Giddings Ave. Free flu shots will be available at the library during voting hours.

More information is available at www.pb45.org or by sending an email to ward45@cityofchicago.org.