As industry grows on DeKalb’s south side, so do efforts to address water infrastructure

DeKALB – As industries have started to crop up on the city of DeKalb’s south side, so, too, have local planning efforts to accommodate future water infrastructure demands.

At their meeting this week, DeKalb city leaders unanimously authorized the consulting firm Baxter and Woodman to perform engineering services for $510,000. The contract will aid preliminary construction planning for a 16-inch transmission main south along Route 23 to Keslinger Road, then east to Afton Road and north to Gurler Road.

Council action marks the first step in what city officials have said are several planned improvements to DeKalb’s water system over the next 10 years.

About a year ago, the city completed a comprehensive strategic water model to provide a detailed assessment of short-term system improvements needed to meet local demand, city documents show. A previous study was conducted in 2006, also by Baxter and Woodman.

City Manager Bill Nicklas said the city is looking to be proactive rather than reactive.

“I believe I speak for the council in this – I speak for the staff with this – when I say we have no interest in being behind the wave,” Nicklas said. “We want to be up with the wave so that we are being considered for investment by people who want to come here and make some pretty significant investment in our community that we are ready. It was just five years ago that we were ready because of the results of our actions taken following that 2006 study, where we thought we needed to at least get some water in a position so it was across the tollway. We were able to feed into what later became the ChicagoWest Business Center.”

With the growing industrial development – such as a Meta DeKalb Data Center and multiple manufacturing and distribution facilities – has come pressure on DeKalb city leaders to tend to and prepare for future building.

The city’s southeast industrial area consists of more than 2,100 acres of built and unbuilt land south of Interstate 88 and east of Route 23, and about 405 acres north of I-88 and east of Peace Road. Those areas are currently under development or of serious interest to site selectors and commercial real estate brokers, city documents show.

In northern Illinois, some community leaders for years have grappled with the question of what to do if water supplies run dry. In DeKalb, water resources run on two aquifers, including a deep sandstone aquifer and a sand and gravel aquifer, which shallow wells draw water from.

First Ward Alderwoman Carolyn Zasada questioned where the city stands in terms of its water supplies.

“Do we run at any sort of risk?” Zasada said. “Has anyone done any modeling for at what point we’ll use it up?”

Nicklas refuted the concern.

“We are not seeing the kind of use that was originally projected when we first started negotiating with these companies,” Nicklas said. “Their estimated need – their actual need – has been much less than we thought. That’s a benefit, but we have to watch as we engage others.”

The city’s system produces 6.8 million gallons per day with a current average daily demand of 3.2 million gallons per day and a peak daily demand of 5.2 million gallons per day, city documents show.

Nicklas said he feels good about the city’s present water supplies and where it can be led in the future.

“We have the ability to prepare for the future, and one way you prepare for the future is to look at what it would cost to not only expand but also to enhance and update our existing model that we have for providing potable water,” Nicklas said.

Baxter and Woodman has identified several areas of need in the city’s water system for the years 2025 through 2027 as it seeks to help make the case for DeKalb officials to consider applying for Illinois Environmental Protection Act loan assistance.

Under the first phase, the firm points to what it calls the “looping” of the 16-inch main system southward along Route 23 to Keslinger Road, then eastward to Afton Road and northward to Gurler Road. The project may consist of new valves, hydrants, trench backfill, pavement or lawn trench restoration, traffic control, construction layout and mobilization, city documents show.

Council action taken this week covers the detailed design, permitting and bidding of the 16-inch water transmission main. The city intends to pursue an IEPA loan to pay for the cost of that construction.

The preliminary construction costs for the 16-inch transmission main carry an estimated $12 million price tag, based on 2024 projections, city documents show. Costs do not include property or right-of-way acquisition, temporary or permanent easements, relocation of other utilities, or construction engineering services.

The firm also suggests that the city look into the addition of a new shallow well, well pump and about 1,000 feet of raw water main connection to the existing West Lincoln Highway treatment plant. The project has an estimated $2.7 million price tag, city documents show.

Under the second phase, the firm points to water system needs for the years 2028 through 2032 that may include an additional well, an additional water treatment plant and a new elevated storage tower.

The city said it is prioritizing the water system needs identified by Baxter and Woodman under phase one – at least for now.

DeKalb city leaders expect that if all goes according to plan, an IEPA loan could be secured as early as January or July 2026, with construction proceeding a short time thereafter.