Story posted Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Walkway Upgrades Near End
Final Improvements To Cap $3 Million Worth Of Work
By TODD WESSELL Journal & Topics Editor
The first major overhaul of Rosemont's elevated pedestrian walkway system that links many of its largest hotels with the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center is nearly complete.
Village board members recently approved a change order in the project that calls for $34,000 in additional improvements, most of which are structural. Once this work is completed, it will draw to a close the $3 million project that's designed to improve the comfort and safety of convention-goers.
The walkway, built in the early 1980s, was built to keep hotel and convention center customers "out of the elements" during inclement weather, said Christopher Stephens, general manager of the center.
"The biggest complaint we got then was about people having to walk outside from November to March," Stephens explained. The elevated walkway stretches from hotels located north and west of the convention facility. Pedestrians do not have to go outside to walk to the shows and other events inside the huge facility, making it more convenient and enjoyable.
The large walkway renovation project, Stephens explained, included installation of new steel supports, painting and drywall to not only preserve the structure but to make it more aesthetically pleasing. A major goal was to have the entire walkway look uniform and modern in appearance. Other improvements included remodeling the elevator areas of the village-owned parking garage across from the convention center where they connect with the walkway. A section of the glass roof where water leaked in was also repaired, said Stephens, and 30 heating and air conditioning units that controlled temperatures inside the walkway were replaced.
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