ALBANY PARK — If it's not winter, it must be construction season.
On Tuesday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced $1.5 billion in infrastructure projects, including the replacement of 75 miles of water mains throughout the city. Among the pipes slated for an upgrade: the stretch beneath Pulaski Road, between Wilson and Elston avenues.
Construction is scheduled to begin in June or July and is of a "breadth and depth" expected to affect travel for 30 days or longer, according to a news release.
A quarter of the city's water mains are more than 100 years old, prone to cracking and clogging.
The Water Department is in a race to replace the ancient pipes before more sinkholes occur like the ones that opened up on Montrose Avenue in 2008 and on the South Side during April's deluge.