Perry Road Bridge project to start in September

A bridge along Perry Road in eastern DeKalb County is expected to close for construction in September, according to the DeKalb County Highway Department.

The bridge spanning a branch of Battle Creek on Perry Road will be closed to all traffic starting Sept. 3. The bridge isn’t expected to reopen until the end of November, according to a DeKalb County Highway Department road closure notice.

The bridge will be removed and reconstructed by Rockford-based Sjostrom & Sons on a $626,763 contract, according to the Highway Department.

DeKalb County Highway Department Support Services Manager Stacy Richardson said the bridge closure will go into effect east of Chase Road and west of Hinckley Road.

“This project consists of removal of an existing single span bridge and replacement with a double celled concrete box culvert,” Richardson said.

The DeKalb County Board first awarded Dixon-based Wendler Engineering Services a $90,660 contract for engineering services related to the project in 2022, but officials later deemed it necessary to expand the scope of the project.

On Aug. 21, the DeKalb County Board awarded a second contract worth $24,496 to Willett Hofmann & Associates, which now owns Wendler Engineering Services, to modify the project design.

That isn’t the only bridge under construction along DeKalb County roadways.

The bridge over west Branch Big Rock Creek along Pritchard Road has been closed to traffic since Aug. 12. Between the intersections of Pritchard Road and Phillips and Scott roads, Sjostrom & Sons is replacing an existing three-span concrete beam structure with a single-span steel beam structure, on an almost $1.3 million construction contract.

That project is expected to be completed in mid-December, after the Battle Creek bridge replacement project is finished, according to the Highway Department.