Glen Ellyn Civic Center Parking Garage and Pedway

Eriksson Engineering Associates, Ltd. (EEA) civil and traffic engineers and landscape architecture consultants worked alongside Mortenson, Walker Parking Consultants Inc., and Shive-Hattery for the $17.5 million Glen Ellyn Civic Center Parking Garage and Pedway project.

Located at 535 Duane Street in downtown Glen Ellyn, this structure is directly behind the Civic Center within Glen Ellyn’s Central Business District. The new parking garage features five levels with 277 stalls, reaching 45 feet above grade.

The accessible garage accommodates residents, Metra commuters, visitors and businesses of downtown Glen Ellyn, and Civic Center employees. The garage was designed to parallel the historic architectural style of the Civic Center by using materials and designs that resemble the building, as did the original intricate herringbone pattern design of the pavers. The Civic Center Parking Garage is another investment in a series of public investments in downtown Glen Ellyn and will help continue economic growth.

The pedestrian corridor links the five-level Civic Center parking garage to the main street to create a campus-like feel and more public space, and provide an improved connection for customers and employees accessing the downtown area from the garage. The design of the pedway and plaza drew from the Village’s designs for their future public streetscape construction. This area provides new opportunities for multiple outdoor dining areas and public artwork displays and features seat wall planter boxes, along with decorative lighting.

Pedestrian access to the 450-space garage was utilized by an existing alley and was intentionally designed by EEA’s civil engineering team to lead out to the commercial businesses in downtown Glen Ellyn. Special attention was given to the review of existing utilities that serve the adjacent property owners and the new parking structure in the event of a potential relocation. Stormwater compliance was met through the mitigation of the new impervious area through the use of the landscape beds and permeable pavers to prevent any water damage.

Traffic engineering studies were conducted by EEA to determine the traffic impacts of the new structure and to assist the Village of Glen Ellyn with the approval process. EEA’s scope included traffic counts, trip generation estimates, and traffic impact analysis.

Ensuring the project enhances the aesthetics of downtown Glen Ellyn, EEA’s landscape architecture team first reviewed the Village’s existing streetscape and vegetation, downtown improvement plans, guidelines, and ordinances. The new landscape architecture designs enhance pedestrian access to the garage, add additional plantings and hardscapes for gathering areas, and provide design for a plaza space.

This project was awarded the 2022 PCI Design Award – Building Award: Best All-Precast Concrete Parking Structure.