While Jacksonville is on the final leg of its Downtown Turnaround renovations, one West Central Illinois town is in the beginning stages to revitalize its own town square.
The City of Pittsfield is currently examining the role a legendary piece of their square, albeit an unseen one, and how it will play in its renovation efforts. The Pike Press reports that city officials and engineers are currently looking at what will be done with the narrow tunnel that leads from the Pike County Jail, on the south side of the square, to the Pike County Courthouse.
The tunnel has never been in use to transport prisoners, but once was used to run pipes from an iron water tank located on the north side of the jail to the courthouse. The water was pumped from the iron tank to the courthouse dome where it was heated and used to heat the courthouse over a century ago. According to the Pike Press report, the water system was exposed in 1985 when the Wade Building was razed for the jail’s expansion. Now, the tunnel currently holds various utilities that will most likely be re-routed during rehabilitation of the square.
Bids are expected to be let in March. The entire street scape along with lead service lines are expected to be addressed during the project. The project is being overseen by Hutchison Engineering and is being paid for through a $3.1 million Illinois Department of Transportation’s Transportation Enhancement Program grant known as ITEP as well as an Illinois EPA $2.9 million grant to address the lead water line infrastructure.