News Release 475 Main Street P.O.Box 488 West Chicago, IL  60185
For Immediate Release
Contact:	David English		Gabrielle Wallace
	West Chicago Water Treatment Facility		gabrielle@cgrantandcompany.com
	denglish@westchicago.org
	City of West Chicago		media
	Phone: 630-293-2255		630-918-9210

West Chicago Water Treatment Plant
dedicated by Mayor Fortner on January 17, 2005

WEST CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, JAN. 17, 2005 - The much-anticipated opening of the West Chicago Water Treatment Facility was made official today by Mayor Michael Fortner. After two years in construction, the facility began providing the city's residents and businesses with clean, pure drinking water.

At 9:15 am, Mayor Fortner and other dignitaries toured the facility, and Mayor Fortner officially opened the plant by turning one of the major valves. In attendance to support this event were U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill), Illinois State Senator Peter Roskam, State Representatives Randy Hultgren and John Millner, DuPage County Board Members Jim Zay and Linda Kurzawa, West Chicago Aldermen as well as two representatives from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, John Dalessandro, Regional Manager of Field Operations and Roger Selburg, Manager of the Division of Pubic Water Supplies.

At 10:00 am, Mayor Fortner conducted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and distributed special awards followed by comments from Speaker Hastert and other officials in the facility’s new 85-seat auditorium overlooking the water processing area.

Built to last 100 years, the facility, located at 1400 W. Hawthorne Lane, was completed on time and within budget, providing West Chicago residents and businesses with some of the cleanest water in Chicagoland at a very low cost compared to other communities. Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc engineered the $30 million facility, including the Claricone technology which serves to purify the water.

According to David English, West Chicago Utility Superintendent, the plant employees 20 people, spans over 50,000 square feet and towers 4 stories. Producing enough water to serve the city’s 25,000 residents plus businesses, totaling 30,000-35,000 people per day, the plant will treat all of the water from the city’s nine ground wells and distribute the water through seven miles of water mains at a rate of 1,200 gallons per minute.

The treatment process will remove many minerals, including iron as well as radium, acting as a large water softener. This will create water similar to Lake Michigan without the risk of pollutants potentially found in lakes and rivers. The process will also bring West Chicago’s water into compliance with the federal radium standard.

“While we were cleaning up the radium, it just made sense to improve the water quality for the residents and businesses of West Chicago, “said English. “The impact will be very positive. Homes and businesses should see improvement in water quality in 30 days, but it will take six months for all of the pipes to clear out. The only action on the part of residents may be to dial back their water softeners in response to the changes in the water’s mineral content.”

The West Chicago Water Treatment Facility will provide educational opportunities for schools and other organizations. The DuPage Teacher’s Association has scheduled an in service day to work in the plant’s lab. Organizations interested in tours or other information are invited to contact Dave English at 630-293-2255 or denglish@westchicago.org.

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