Geneva takes another step toward electric upgrade for industrial development

GENEVA – Aldermen acting as the Committee of the Whole unanimously recommended approval Monday of a $60,000 deposit to ComEd to do a detailed engineering plan to provide electricity to a proposed ninth substation on Geneva’s southeast side.

ComEd required the 10 percent deposit on its $600,000 estimate for anticipated work on the city’s proposed Southeast Development substation.

The city is considering building another substation to provide power for 200 vacant acres that officials hope will become an industrial park. The area is east of Kirk Road and south of Route 38, officials said.

“It is not connected to the city’s electrical utility,” Public Works Director Rich Babica said of the area.

ComEd’s engineering plan is to see how to modify its system so it can provide service via a single line feed from Fabyan Parkway, officials said.

Industrial development of those acres is included in the city’s Southeast Master Plan for redevelopment, which was a 2012 amendment to Geneva’s 2003 Comprehensive Plan.

Mayor Kevin Burns said the deposit will go toward the cost of building the substation, after ComEd determines a final cost later this year.

“It’s a ‘build and they will come’ philosophy,” Burns said. “A lot of folks are talking to me about that [area]. The challenge is how improved is the property. There are stubs for water, but the big thing is electricity.”

The estimated cost of building the substation ranges from $3 million to $5 million, but Burns said the city could seek to recapture that cost through annexation agreements from developers.

“I think it’s a very prudent move,” Burns said of a long-term plan to build another substation. “It should be noted, this does not affect our enterprise budget. This is capital we have on hand” in the electric fund.