Work on renovations at RiverEdge Park could start in September if the Aurora City Council approves the first contract connected to the project.
Aldermen on the Infrastructure and Technology Committee this week recommended about a $4.1 million contract with R.C. Wegman of Aurora to be the construction manager for the project. The contract also includes some of the first work to be done.
RiverEdge Park is the city-owned outdoor live music and events facility along North Broadway and the Fox River on the northern edge of downtown in Aurora.
The overall renovation project is estimated to be about $16 million and will take about two years to complete. The project includes a new backstage, a new entry on the southern edge of the park, a new beverage pavilion and VIP section, and new restroom facilities.
The backstage work will include office space, dressing rooms, restrooms, a dining area and an outside area facing the Fox River. Jason Bauer, Aurora Public Works assistant director, said the bulk of the contract recommended this week would be for R.C. Wegman to be the construction manager.
The city issued a request for qualifications for the construction manager, and Wegman was one of two companies that responded.
Earlier this year, the city approved a change order to a contract that would pay Chicago-based Ratio Architects, LLC about $1.4 million to design and engineer the renovation project.
The backstage project grew from about 7,000 square feet to 24,000 square feet, Bauer has said. He said this week that most of the changes were done after the Aurora Civic Center Authority, which manages the site for the city, consulted with management of different acts as to what they need in support facilities.
Current facilities at RiverEdge include a trailer, and the backstage is not considered adequate enough to attract bigger acts to the venue.
The plan is to start work on the backstage as soon as the RiverEdge season ends in September, with the work to be completed by the time Christkindlmarket is ready to start in late November. The popular Christmas-time German-American market has made RiverEdge its suburban home, and it has attracted more than 200,000 people, Bauer said.
After Christkindlmarket clears out in January 2025, the city would start on the renovations in the rest of the park, which include the new entry gate on the south end, the beverage pavilion and restrooms.
The entryway would be in a sort of C-shape and would welcome people to the park entering from Broadway, or from the pedestrian bridge across the river. Ticketing for the bridge entrance would still be on the West Side of the river, but ticketing for the Broadway entrance would be in the new section.
Ald. Juany Garza, 2nd Ward, committee chair, said she is “very happy” with the new restrooms, because there are currently long lines for their use.
“That’s one of the biggest complaints they get,” Bauer said.
He said that officials hope the new restrooms will cut down on the number of portable toilets needed.
The new beverage area will be dedicated strictly to beverages, and should eliminate some of the long lines at the current refreshments area. The current facility will remain for food.
Bauer said the renovations will continue through the RiverEdge 2025 season, which may cut back on some of the acts they have there. Eventually, the renovations are expected to increase the capacity of the park by about 2,500 people. Current capacity is about 7,300 for events and 6,500 for concerts.
Officials hope to have the renovations completely finished in time for when Christkindlmarket would open in 2025.
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