SYCAMORE | The House of Representatives’ approval of an ethics reform bill may work in Sycamore’s favor.

“It’s their way of saying we’re going to start a new day in Washington,” Patricia Daley, Principal with the Daley Policy Group, said Monday.

With the 2008 elections just around the corner, federal funding will likely take on a more predominant role in area developments. Politicians will want to point out specific community matters they were a part of, Daley said.

Current federal funding objectives for Sycamore include the Harvester Square Brownfield site, Bethany Road construction and California Street reconstruction. Clean-up is intended for the environmentally hazardous Harvester site, and plans remain for the upgrade of Bethany Road to a Class 2 truck route, making it wider. Focus has also been placed on downtown streetscape improvements needed along the two-block stretch of California Street.

The street maintenance allocation in the public works budget will go to cover crack-filling, alley repair and minor re-surfacing projects within the city, said city manager Bill Nicklas.

Street repairs will be discussed more in February, Nicklas said.

Daley said the Brownfield request is in process and coming within Representative Dennis Hastert’s office, and the Bethany project “seems to be looking very nicely for fiscal year 2008.”