As Illinois enters a new fiscal year on July 1, residents across the state will see higher fuel prices due to an increase in the state’s Motor Fuel Tax (MFT), which rises to 48.3 cents per gallon for gasoline and 55.8 cents for diesel.
While rising taxes are rarely met with enthusiasm, in Park Forest, residents will soon see those dollars at work improving local infrastructure.
The Village of Park Forest is moving forward with two major projects funded through MFT revenue—most notably, the $6 million Forest Boulevard Reconstruction Project, a long-anticipated overhaul years in the making.
The Forest Boulevard initiative dates back to 2018, when the Village secured a $252,000 “Invest in Cook” grant from Cook County to assess the feasibility of reconstructing the road. The Phase 1 engineering study, conducted by V3 Engineering Consultants, revealed not only financial hurdles but also an opportunity to reimagine the roadway into a more community-centered design.
With limited access to federal and state road funding due to Forest Boulevard's classification as a local road, village officials pivoted toward a "complete streets" concept—designing roadways that accommodate pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and transit users of all abilities.
The revised plan calls for removing two western lanes between Indianwood and Lakewood Boulevards and transforming the space into a linear park with a multi-use path. The path will extend west to Westwood Drive, with future plans to reach Allegheny Street to the east. The project also includes updated ADA-accessible infrastructure, new curbs and gutters, improved drainage, and new parking on both sides of the road.
In 2020, the Village received an additional $480,000 “Invest in Cook” grant for Phase 2 engineering, followed by a $3 million award from the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP), which made the full scope of the project financially viable. A third “Invest in Cook” grant of $480,000 awarded this year will fund construction engineering. To date, Park Forest has secured more than $4.2 million in outside funding for the effort.
Construction is slated to begin in 2025.
Beyond road reconstruction, Park Forest is also using MFT funds to upgrade aging streetlight infrastructure. In recent years, the Department of Public Works (DPW) has replaced older streetlights with energy-efficient LED models and is now addressing the underground wiring that powers them—most of which is roughly 70 years old.
To tackle frequent outages caused by failing street light circuits, DPW began hiring contractors to directional bore new wiring conduit. After the conduit is installed, DPW staff rewires the circuits and installs new poles when necessary. In the past two years, DPW has installed new circuits on North Street, Lakewood, McGarity, and McCarthy.
This year, the Village plans to continue the effort on Michael, Dunlap, Dunham, Cromwell, and Juniper Streets. In May, Park Forest opened six bids for the Fiscal 2026 Street Light Repairs-Conduit Installation Contract. The lowest bid—$33,335—came from Archon Construction of Addison, a company with prior experience in the Village.
The project will be funded from the $50,000 allocated in the Fiscal 2026 MFT budget for streetlight improvements.
With these investments, Park Forest officials say they’re committed to improving public safety, infrastructure resilience, and quality of life for residents—turning tax revenue into tangible progress.