St. Charles alderman candidates vary in water quality stances

St. Charles relies on seven water supply wells and six storage reservoirs to serve its residents. Water quality and safety is a constant area of concern.

It's also an election issue that was addressed at the recent League of Women Voters forum by the 12 candidates seeking to fill one alderman seat per ward in the April 6 consolidated election.

Ward 1

Challenger Richard Balla, a St. Charles resident since he was 8 years old, said he's never owned a water softener but understands the need. He'd like to see a study done to determine if the problem is local or systemwide.

Ron Silkaitis, the incumbent, said a central soft water system has been discussed by the city but would be expensive. He believes community forums are needed to help residents understand the cost.

Ward 2

Ryan Bongard, the challenger, said water quality is fine from an EPA standpoint, but the city still needs to identify who is affected by water issues to determine if they are isolated or widespread.

Incumbent Art Lemke said the city's most-productive well is from an aquifer that picks up a lot of limestone. A citywide water-softener, while expensive, would eliminate the need for individual softeners and reduce salt levels in the system.

Ward 3

Chuck Amenta, the current city clerk, knows the frustration of living with hard water on the far west side of the city. He wants input from residents to determine if the issue is localized or citywide.

Paul Lencioni admits to not being an expert on the subject, but he's in favor of investigating the issue with confidence the city can solve it.

Ward 4

John Hoscheit spent years as president of Kane County's Forest Preserve Commission and lauded the effort to obtain thousands of acres of land to recharge the water supply. Any solution would be long-term and may require issuing bonds to pay for it.

Laurel Moad believes each of the city's seven wells must be analyzed to determine if remediation is necessary on all of them. It's possible not every well needs addressing.

Because a systemwide water-softening fix is an all-or-nothing decision, Bryan Wirball said community input is critical to determine if residents will accept a significant hike in water bills.

Ward 5

Knowing the enormity of a systemwide solution, Richard Artz said the city must be sure of the situation before making a decision on an expensive fix.

Kim Malay noted the 100-year age of portions of the water system infrastructure and said installing a citywide softening system could cost millions of dollars and drastically increase resident fees. A referendum may be needed.

Through his experience on the county board, Steve Weber said he learned the importance of acquiring land and protecting the areas around city wells to make sure no toxins leech into the system. He stressed the importance of water treatment so the entire system remains safe.