Residents and visitors driving into Geneva will be greeted with new welcome signage at some of the City’s major gateway points by year’s end.
Two primary arterial signs are scheduled to be installed on State Street (Route 38)/Bricher Road and Fabyan Parkway/Kaneville Road while secondary signs will be located at First Street (Route 31)/Wheeler Park and Bennett (Route 25)/Division streets.
Installation is expected to start this week, pending approval of a construction permit. The work, which will not impact traffic or sidewalk access, is anticipated to be finished in 2017 weather permitting.
The primary signage will feature the words “Geneva” and “Est. 1835” engraved into an 8-foot by 5.5-foot limestone slab that sits on top of a concrete base with brick veneer. The back portion of the monument signs will showcase an arched 10-foot corten steel piece showcasing the City’s logo. New or existing trees will be incorporated to serve as a backdrop along with additional landscaping that will be planted in the spring.
The secondary signage will be a smaller version of the main monument.
The signs were designed by Lannert Group of Geneva with guidance and overview of a design committee consisting of aldermen and City staff. The committee established natural materials would set the tone for the signs, which would be grounded in Geneva’s history. Brick is the most popular material in Geneva’s historic buildings; limestone is the element that forms the Fox River bank and identified the valley; and steel references the City’s historic past as a manufacturing and job creation community.
In keeping with the design committee’s goal, the corten steel piece was built by Horn Steel of Geneva. Horn Steel, also known as Wm Horn Structural Steel Co., is one of the City’s oldest businesses established in 1896. Horn Steel provided outstanding expertise to help the City create the sign’s vertical feature with the Geneva logo. The corten steel will age in place with a rust patina that will provide a dark, textured finish within two years.
The new welcome signs will either be replacing older versions or be installed in locations where signs had previously existed but had been removed due to damage. The City plans on adding more signage in the future as funding becomes available.