The Village of Peoria Heights will break ground on what is believed to be the largest public works investment in its history at noon Friday, Sept. 25.
The $8.1 million water filtration plant, at 5413 N. Galena Road, has been years in the making and will sit immediately to the west of the current water treatment facility.
The money to pay for it all is being borrowed through the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency’s Public Water Supply Loan Program, though nearly $7 million of that will be forgiven, effectively making it a grant. The remaining $1.1 million is being financed at an interest rate of 1.62 percent, to be repaid over 28 years.
Leander Construction of Canton is the lead contractor on the project. The Village’s water consultant, Missouri-based Woodard & Curran, is overseeing the work on the Village’s behalf, including engineering and design, at a cost of $945,000.
The plant will remove manganese and iron from the Village’s water system. Manganese is the primary concern. A naturally occurring metal in soil and groundwater in these parts, it also is a significant contributor to the tea-colored water some local residents get when they turn on the taps. While the plant will specifically address that issue, the 3,000-square-foot facility also will be able to accommodate future expansion to filter out other unwanted substances. The existence of PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals” that have been widely used in industrial and consumer products in the U.S., in water supplies is a national concern, with government regulation considered inevitable at some point down the road.
“For the first time in 127 years, the Village of Peoria Heights will have filtration in its water system,” Peoria Heights Mayor Matt Wigginton has stated. “This filtration plant is going to be night and day” in terms of its impact on water quality, he said.
This project is believed to be the Village’s largest single public works investment ever. You’d have to go back almost 60 years, to the construction of the iconic water tower and observation deck in Tower Park in 1968, followed by the completion of Village Hall in 1974, to find the closest comparisons to a project of this scope. The cost of those latter two public developments was significantly offset by private donations, specifically by the Forest Park Foundation and Pabst Brewing at the time.
Members of the public are welcome to attend.
Congressman Eric Sorensen also will be present and will be available for questions from the media.