Bolingbrook Continues to Pursue Municipal Joint Water Agency

The  Village Board approved an ordinance Tuesday for an intergovernmental agreement between the villages of Bolingbrook, Homer Glen, Woodridge, Romeoville and Lemont, for the purposes of establishing a municipal joint action water agency “to provide adequate supplies of water on an economical and efficient basis for members’ municipalities.”

Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar said the ordinance removes the Village of Plainfield, which had originally signed on but later opted out and adds the Village of Lemont to the agreement.

Claar said he has always favored tapping into Lake Michigan water because “no engineer could tell us there was sufficient water in the aquifers below us” to provide an adequate supply of clean water for Bolingbrook for years to come.

But since 2002, when Bolingbrook’s water system was sold to the privately-owned Illinois American Water Company, rates have steadily increased for residents, whose complaints have often landed on the mayor’s desk.

Claar said village officials met with representatives of Illinois American Water a few weeks ago and the company “offered nothing” in the way of rate reductions.

“We’ve been talking about this for a couple years,” Claar said. “We’ve heard nothing from them, (Illinois American Water) so we will continue to explore acquiring the system. We can eliminate the profit motive and we’ll get better service.”

By acting together through the formation of the Northern Will County Joint Action Water Agency, communities who sign on to the agreement could take action against Illinois American Water Company and use their powers of eminent domain to take over a pipeline that carries Lake Michigan water to the western suburbs.

“They are not the most friendly operator,” Claar said of Illinois American Water. “They continue to raise rates as if it’s a piggy bank they can just go to when they want.”

Village of Woodridge management analyst Jack Knight said only the 200 commercial and residents who live and work south of Interstate 55 would make use of it. Residents and businesses north of I-55 are serviced by the Woodridge water system. 

Only portions of Lemont and Romeoville would use the pipeline, as well. 

All of the communities are a part of the bill because of their location, Knight said.  

"Before the governor signed the bill, all the communities who were serviced by the line had to participate in the potential purchase," Knight wrote in an email. 

Over the summer, Bolingbrook and Lemont passed resolutions supporting the bill. The village board did not pass a resolution but supports the bill, Knight said, and hopes Quinn signs it. 

in July that although Romeoville does not intend to use the water system, the village is participating for possible future benefits. 

"It's a resource that could be an asset to the community in the future," Noak said.

Woodridge has a similar position, Knight said. 

"We are also participating in the effort with the expectation that we will have an ability to better control a portion of the water rate," Knight wrote. 

The majority of Woodridge residents whose water is serviced by the village following a village board vote last week. 

The village board approved a water rate increase Thursday from $4.12 to $5.32 per 1,000 gallons, effective Jan. 1, 2012. There will be an unincorporated surcharge increase from $4.12 to $4.18 per 1,000 gallons.

Of the $1.20 increase, $.70 goes to the city of Chicago through the DuPage Water Commission and $.50 goes to the village. Although the village has in the past kept its portion of the bill constant, aging infrastructure and a depleted water fund balance prevented them from doing so this year. 

Although the new rates will be applied in January, they will not be billed until April 2012.