Construction of $6.1 million 'Gages Lake' water tower set to begin in spring
A water tower will be built on an open spot in unincorporated Gages Lake designated and prepped with underground piping for that purpose more than three decades ago.
The long-envisioned project at 18534 W. Old Gages Lake Road, east of Route 45 near Grayslake, is scheduled to begin in the spring following Lake County Board approval last month of a $6.1 million construction contract.
The new tower will stand 150 feet high and hold 1.25 million gallons of water - more than eight times the capacity of the familiar "Wildwood" tower off John Mogg Road just north of Route 120.
County officials say that tower, which refers to one of the unincorporated communities in the area, has reached the end of its service life and a new one is needed for a variety of reasons.
"It's one of our larger and more critical projects" for its impact on service and reliability in the communities served, said Brittany Albrecht Sloan, engineering supervisor with the Lake County public works department.
Lake County owns and operates the Wildwood Water System, which supplies nearly 1 million gallons of Lake Michigan water to 14,000 residents in Gages Lake, Wildwood, Third Lake, Mariners Cove, Arbor Vista and College of Lake County in Grayslake.
Water is stored in the Wildwood tower and two reservoirs. The new tower site was donated to the county in 1990 with the development of the Tangueray Meadows subdivision.
Centrally located in the system between the reservoirs and near two large-diameter water mains, the site was identified as the preferred and most cost-effective option for a new tower.
It will provide optimum pressure and up to three days of water storage in case of an emergency, such as a power outage, or planned shut down, compared to less than 24 hours currently, according to the county.
Design of the new tower began in 2021 but many residents weren't aware.
"It was a surprise to a lot of residents so we had a public feedback session," said Carissa Casbon, the District 7 county board member who represents the area.
Casbon said some residents were concerned runoff from the tower site would aggravate area flooding and said they sleep by their sump pump when it rains.
Blocked views were another concern and the public works department "bent over backward" to engage the community and work through issues with residents regarding the design and other aspects of the project, she said.
During the process a "name the tower" contest generated more than 575 responses and dozens of suggestions. "Gages Lake" was the winner and that lettering will be on south side of the tower only with the north side left blank.
Construction of the new tower foundation will start early next year and the project is expected to be complete in spring 2025. The current tower will remain in service to provide added storage and pressure and improvements are anticipated.
In unrelated projects, the county is replacing more than 7,200 feet of 50-year-old water mains in Wildwood and Allen Farms and began installing a secondary storm sewer to reduce the flood risk for 210 property owners and runoff that floods local roads.