Emerson Park Data Book

[ Data Book ]

IV. Infrastructure Survey Results

Contents

• Background
• A. Two Assessments
• B. Streets
• C. Sidewalks
• D. Curbs & Gutters
• E. Sewers & Manhole Covers
• F. Street Lighting

Adequate infrastructure is essential for healthy urban environments. Streets, sewers, sidewalks, viaducts, bridges, curbs, gutters, and traffic controls are typical of most communities’ infrastructure inventories. Municipalities typically fund, implement, and maintain such elements of urban development. Thus, serious attention must be given to the capital improvements budget. East St. Louis has experienced severe problems with municipal services due to a shrinking tax base and intragovernmental coordination problems, as well as intergovernmental conflicts with county and state government. As a result, all neighborhoods within the community have suffered. Emerson Park experiences a unique position in terms of infrastructure as its general depopulation and subsequent downsizing has greatly reduced the overall density of the neighborhood.

A full assessment of existing conditions needs to be conducted to begin the development of a capital improvement program. This assessment would inventory the present infrastructure scenario, determine potential development obstacles, and allow for the prioritization of improvements based on present needs. Almost no data exists at this time concerning such information, which makes financial projections regarding costs impossible. Without a capital improvement plan the City will have a difficult time acquiring funding sources for such improvements from neither lending institutions nor governmental agencies. The expansion of Metro Link into Emerson Park and the planned $20 million tax credit project offers potential for capital improvements. Also, the recently designated Empowerment Zone funding can be applied towards infrastructure improvements.

A. Two Infrastructure Assessments: Enterprise and University of Illinois

In 1997 an in-depth infrastructure study of East St. Louis, entitled The East St. Louis Enterprise Community Infrastructure Plan, was completed by Horner & Shifrin, Inc. This study outlines existing conditions of various districts within the City that will be most affected by the Metro Link expansion, such as the central business district, Olivette Park, and Landsdowne. Due to the light rail system locating in the Emerson Park neighborhood, an assessment of each station area within St. Clair County was performed to determine current and future infrastructure needs. This section contains the initial findings of the Enterprise study.

Enterprise used the following ratings to determine conditions of streets, sidewalks, and curbs/gutters:

• Good: Streets or roads are serviceable, show little evidence of potholes, cracks or other surface malfunctions. The same applies to curbs, gutter, and drainage facilities such as ditches or culverts.
• Fair: Streets or roads are in disrepair due to cracking, potholes or existence of vegetation and overgrowth. Curbs, gutters, and drainage facilities show signs of cracking and spalling, and need to be replaced.
• Poor: Streets or roads are in need of major repair or replacement due to cracks, potholes, and surface deterioration. Curbs need replacement, gutters need to be repaired, replaced, or cleared.

To supplement this data, University of Illinois students conducted an infrastructure survey in February and March of 1998. The infrastructure survey is very similar to the Land Use Survey in that it is on a segment by segment basis. The results of this survey are displayed in map and table format and the results are generally conclusive with those of the Enterprise study. The University study uses a continuum from good to bad to rate the condition of the infrastructure. ‘Good’ was defined as not showing any signs of fault or malfunction and ‘destroyed’ or ‘bad’ was defined as entirely unusable or missing. The surveyors assessed the condition of each block, both sides, in four quarter segments per block. The segments and the two sides of the street were then averaged to get the overall condition of the infrastructure on that particular block. In many cases, residents were asked to supplement the survey results with their own knowledge of critical infrastructure problem sites.

B. Street Conditions

Table 4.1
Street Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
Enterprise Study, 1997

Table 4.2
Street Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Table 4.3
Street Material
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

The Enterprise study found seventy-five percent of streets in fair to poor condition. The University study found similar results (Map 4.1). Many streets have large potholes and cracks, which cause costly damage to automobiles, present a tripping hazard, make all forms of transportation difficult, and deter investment. Currently, asphalt and concrete are the predominant paving materials next to brick. Several of the streets still maintain their original brick composition and should be preserved if they are in good condition, due to aesthetic, traffic calming, and durability benefits. In August of 1998, residents identified a list of streets that first came to their mind as needing major repairs or replacement.

Table 4.4
Street Problems as Identified by Residents
Emerson Park Study Area

Map 4.1: Street Condition

C. Sidewalks

Table 4.5
Sidewalk Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
Enterprise Study, 1997

Table 4.6
Sidewalk Condition
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Table 4.7
Sidewalk Material
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Sidewalks are crucial to encouraging pedestrian activity within any environment. In a community such as East St. Louis where car ownership is relatively low, sidewalks are not only an aesthetic improvement, but also a means of transportation. Safety is greatly enhanced by the existence of sidewalks for both children and adults. Adequate walkways help outline pathways, facilitate social interaction, and establish sense of place. No sidewalks in Emerson Park are in good condition, according to the Enterprise study. The University survey found only 2,542 feet (2.6%) of sidewalk in good condition (Map 4.2). Concrete walks tend to be relatively inexpensive to install and maintain. When residents were asked which sidewalks were in need of repair, the overwhelming response was, "All of them!"

Map 4.2: Sidewalk Condition

D. Curbs & Gutters

Table 4.8
Curb & Gutter Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
Enterprise Study, 1997

Table 4.9
Curb Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Table 4.10
Curb Material
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Curbs and gutters are essential elements for proper drainage. Curbing also greatly enhances the visual quality of a streetscape as it differentiates between foot and automobile traffic. An overwhelming majority of curbs and gutters within the neighborhood were categorized as poor to detroyed, providing insight into the current drainage situation (Map 4.3). The majority of gutters are made out of concrete. Lack of gutters not only inhibits collection of stormwater runoff, but also presents safety hazards, places undo stress upon intact infrastructure, and adversely affects the area’s visual quality. Serious attention needs to be paid to repair of existing curbs and gutters and replacement of missing elements.

Map 4.3: Curb Condition

E. Sewers and Manhole Covers

The sewer system consists of manhole covers and stormwater drainage. A complete assessment of existing conditions needs to be conducted to properly determine future costs and prioritize needs. The Enterprise Study inspected only the system near the light rail extension. According to the Enterprise report, 25 % (40,300 ft.) of sanitary sewers will need to be repaired after an overall assessment is completed. 15% (24,000 ft.) should be capable of repairs and 10% (16,100 ft.) will need to be replaced. Storm sewers appear to be in fair shape and the report makes no recommendations for repair or replacement of any lines within Emerson Park. Ratings for the conditions of manhole covers are as follows:

• Good: structurally sound, mild infiltration
• Fair: cracked, medium to heavy infiltration, repairable
• Poor: deteriorated, damaged structure, maintenance hazard, extreme infiltration

Table 4.11
Manhole Cover Conditions
Emerson Park Study Area
Enterprise Study, 1998

Overall, manhole covers are in fair to good condition within the study area. 13% of the covers were not rated as they could not be properly inspected from a visual survey. Missing manhole covers create obvious safety risks to residents and can cause severe damage to automobiles.

The University study looked at the number of manholes on each block, the number of manholes that are missing covers, the number of street drains per block and the number of street drains with missing grills. An adequate number of manholes should be added to Emerson Park. The survey found 59 blocks without any manholes for servicing the drainage system and also found 18 manholes that did not have covers on them (Map 4.4). Missing covers represents a serious threat to the health and safety of all adults and children. Most of the streets have only 0-2 street drains present and many of these drains are missing grills. An inadequate number of street drains may be contributing to the flooding problems in Emerson Park (Map 4.5). The existing drains may be in need of repair or cleaning. Missing grill covers again presents serious safety threats to all residents and does not filter any trash from entering the drainage area. It is common in Emerson Park to see a drain filled with debris.

Table 4.13
Street Drains
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Table 4.12
Manholes
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

Map 4.4: Manholes

Map 4.5: Street Drains

F. Street Lighting

Residents regularly report that Emerson Park is very poorly lit and that they do not feel safe at night because of the lack of lighting in the neighborhood. Not only does a lack of lighting promote crime, but it also creates a larger tripping hazard when combined with inadequate streets, sidewalks and curbs. The Land Use Survey recorded the number of overhead street lights per block length (Map 4.6) . The survey did not access whether or not the lights were bright or working at all.

Table 4.14
Number of Street Lights per Block Length
Emerson Park Study Area
University of Illinois Study, 1998

In August of 1998, residents of Emerson Park were asked to identify sites in the neighborhood that are notorious for being poorly lit.

Table 4.15
Street Lighting Problems as Identified by Residents
Emerson Park Study Area

Document author(s) : Cathy Klump
Last modified: 13 October 1999, Deanna Koenigs