Bartlett to switch to Lake Michigan water in 2019

Bartlett trustees have chosen to make Lake Michigan the village's water source beginning in 2019, changing from a decades-long arrangement in which half came from the Fox River via Elgin and half from local wells.

In order to make the transition, Bartlett will become the 29th member of the DuPage Water Commission, which is the second largest water system in Illinois and the largest water customer of Chicago.

Going with the DuPage Water Commission was one of four options village officials considered ahead of the May 2019 expiration of the current deal with Elgin.

At a projected infrastructure cost of $43.3 million in 2018 dollars, it is the costliest of those options. However, officials said, monthly water bills were going up in 2019 whichever direction they chose.

Today's average customer using 6,000 gallons a month pays $38.16. In 2019, through the DuPage Water Commission, the same customer is expected to pay $79.20 monthly.

Among the advantages of the DuPage Water Commission was having the lowest water purchase rate this year, a lack of outstanding debt and the reliability of Lake Michigan water. Negatives included it being the only option requiring a buy-in fee, the highest estimated capital cost and the long-distance connection.

Bartlett Village President Kevin Wallace said cost was a high priority in the village board's decision, but so was water quality. With Bartlett currently being served by both local wells and the Fox River, residents have been left uncertain about the source of their water at any given time.

"That's an ongoing source of aggravation for residents, and understandably so," Wallace said.

Earlier this year, the village had decided to go entirely with Elgin water. But a delay in Elgin's completion of the agreement, coupled with an algae bloom in the Fox River that caused some temporary taste and odor issues, led Bartlett officials to go in a different direction.

Wallace said the algae bloom was not Elgin's fault, but Bartlett's officials and consultants considered the Fox River to be more susceptible to them than Lake Michigan.

The village will keep its wells operational as backup sources of water in emergencies, Public Works Director Dan Dinges said.

The rejected alternatives Bartlett had been considering were going 100 percent with Elgin, going with Lake Michigan water supplied by the Northwest Suburban Municipal Joint Action Water Agency, and going 50-50 with both those options.

The Elgin only option would cost the average customer $70.20 a month in 2019. That customer would have paid $78.60 monthly using only the Joint Action Water Agency, and $69.60 to divide Bartlett's water supply between Elgin and the agency.