Hinsdale Strikes Compromise On Resident Lead Line Costs

HINSDALE, IL – A previously divided Hinsdale Village Board came together Tuesday on how much residents will pay for the replacement of lead pipes.

Never in question was that the village would pay the entire cost from the resident's shutoff valve, known as a b-box, to the water main.

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However, during a July meeting, village trustees split over whether to pay any of the costs from the valve to the home.

Under a compromise, the trustees agreed to pay $3,000 of the resident's share of lead line replacements, though the work could cost a resident a lot more.

For economic hardship cases, Hinsdale will cover all of the costs and place a lien on the home. That way, the village can collect when the property is sold.

The hardship provision only applies to owner-occupied homes.

Hinsdale is responding to federal and state mandates to replace lead lines, which endanger people's health when they corrode.

Trustee Scott Banke called the discussions over lead line replacements "incredibly thoughtful."

Despite a time of "acrimonious politics," he said, the board found a way to come from different places and reach a fair solution.

During a July meeting, Banke and trustees Luke Stifflear and Neale Byrnes opposed paying for the residents' part of the lines. They objected to taxpayers covering the costs of projects on private property.

At the time, Trustee Alexis Braden was the only trustee to voice support for the village staff's recommended option, paying for half a resident's costs up to $6,000.

She said that would ensure timely compliance and avoid creating a hardship for residents.

Village President Greg Hart agreed.

The Village Board's vote was unanimous. Stifflear was absent.

The problem of lead lines is smaller in Hinsdale than elsewhere. The village only has 300 such pipes, making up about 5 percent of the total. Their replacement is estimated to cost $6 million over a decade.

That's a far cry from La Grange. There, the village government expects to replace two-thirds of pipes, costing $68 million.

Part of the reason for the difference is that Hinsdale builders started installing copper lines in the late 1940s, with other suburbs following suit in the 1960s, according to the village.

Also, many Hinsdale property owners have torn down their historic homes and built anew, replacing lead lines.