The Illinois Department of Transportation is rebuilding East State Street-Illinois Route 38 from Glengarry Drive to the Fox River in Geneva, a multi-year, $22 million project that began in January and is expected to be completed late next year.
The project is welcome in that it will upgrade the city’s east corridor with roadway widening, streetscape enhancements, bike lanes, traffic signal upgrades, new street lighting and water main and storm drainage infrastructure improvements.
But all that construction work comes with disruption for some 65 local businesses there.
“The road has been torn up for months,” said Sara Parisi, owner of Bad Guys Bagels at 501 E. State St.
“It’s definitely affected business, but what are you going to do? It’s a necessary evil,” Parisi said. “I’m sure it’s going to be great, but until then, we’re just trying to mitigate things. We’re telling customers to come in through the back on Route 25 and avoid the construction.”
The city has started a promotion to encourage people to patronize those businesses during construction, using a cartoonish mascot called Carl The Cone.
Carl has a happy face, while holding a three shopping bags in his right hand a sign in the left proclaiming, “Support East State Businesses.”
Looking as sweet as candy corn – and nearly in the same shape as the traditional fall candy – he smiles from banners and signs installed along the East State Street corridor.
The city created a web page also, called Support East State Street, part of a social media campaign to promote the businesses during construction.
“That’s cute,” Parisi said, of Carl.
Jimmy Nicolaou, who owns both Riganato Old World Grille at 700 E. State St. and Honeybird Fried Chicken at 427 E. State St., said he got an email from the city about Carl.
“I didn’t go to deep into it,” Nicolaou said. “I hope it does get people to come over here.”
Riganato has been open since 2012. Honeybird, located just across the street, opened in April.
Like Parisi, he also noted there are ways to get to the restaurants from Route 25 and duck the construction.
“We’re a little down, but we are fighting,” Nicolaou said. “There’s nothing we can do about it.”