Voters in Villa Park will have the final say as to whether or not the village's roads are fixed, after the Village Board voted earlier this month to add two referendum questions related to the improvements to February's ballot.

The first question will ask if the village should sell $27.5 million in bonds to repave and reconstruct 40 percent of the village's roads.

The second part of the road referendum will ask residents to agree to a half-percent sales tax increase. The current sales tax in Villa Park is 7.75 percent, while the DuPage County sales tax is at 7.25 percent. Municipalities are allowed to levy their own rates. The increase in the village’s sales tax will bring it to 8.25 percent.

Village President Tom Cullerton said the increase will create a reserve for future road projects, while the $27.5 million in bonds will pay for the reconstruction of 40 percent of village side roads. Repairs to major roads, like St. Charles Road which is already under construction, are funded by federal grants.

The bonds will create a rise in taxes. For example, an owner of a $250,000 home will incur a tax increase of more than $18 a month, or around $216 a year.

“We try to find grant money as best we can for those because those are major thoroughfares,” Cullerton said. “The side streets need a bulk of the work and the feds aren’t going to pay for that.”

Village Trustee Dave Hegland said there are two options for the village in fixing roads: to resurface 10 to 20 roads or to dig up and completely rebuild a few roads.

The reconstruction of old roads will also help repair the sewer issues that have been plaguing Villa Park.

“The roads are the number one issue in Villa Park,” Hegland said. “It’s always one of the first things mentioned, and if not, it’s the second.”

Some village streets have been graded at less than 30 on a 1-to-100 scale by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The bond money would allows the village to improve streets to an 80 grade, Cullerton said.

“When you talk to people in other cities, what Villa Park is known for is bad roads,” Cullerton said. “That’s not a good image for the village to have. ... (Road construction) is an investment in the overall town, it increases the value of the entire town.”

Cullerton said if the referendum questions pass, small repaving projects will begin in the summer of 2010 while major reconstruction projects will start in 2011. Villa Park is looking at a minimum of three years of road construction.

“I’m expecting challenges, but a lot of the construction will be on neighborhood streets, so it should not affect heavy traffic areas,” Hegland said.