IMEG Engineering has given some solutions to the LaSalle County Property Committee to fix some cracking in the women’s pod at the county jail.
Structural Engineer Karl Pennings says the cracking is caused by both settlement and shrinking.
Pennings says the settlement was caused by a tree in the courtyard.
He says as the tree got bigger it pulled more of the water from the soil.
He says the tree doesn’t need to be removed because it’s full grown.
He says the committee should look into caulking the horizontal cracking and adding joints in some corners to stop the shrinking of some of the walls.
Pennings says vertical cracks are caused by the shrinking of some of the walls.
He says as a result as they shrink they make their own joints.