PEKIN, Ill. – It may not sound like news to you, but Tazewell County and Pekin officials say there’s plenty good about an officially-completed sidewalk project that should be told.
The sidewalk at the Tazewell County McKenzie Building in Pekin was reconstructed with state grant money to make it more handicapped-accessible — a good thing because more people are using the facility for early voting.
“In the 2020 election, over 17,000 residents utilized this location for…early voting,” said John Ackerman, Tazewell County Clerk. “We’ve never had numbers that high voting at this facility.”
Ackerman says it will be easier for those with mobility issues to enter the building for early voting, and it will also be easier for residents to use other county services available there.
Pekin Mayor Mark Luft sees even more good than that.
“Being able to have that partnership with the county, and being able to work with county officials, engineers, with the state and the city combined, to have those entities come together to get something really needed done, a huge improvement for the community, it is really fun to sit back and watch that,” said Luft.
The Illinois State Board of Elections gave Acerkman’s office $91,250 for the work, which also included making the building’s back door more accessible as well. An additional $3,200 was paid for by the county, as the project went over budget.
The only work left to do, Ackerman, is the installation of a outdoor hand rail — the only part of the project impacted by a supply chain issue.
