Crest Hill holds IEPA public hearing on water‑main lining that would add Larkin Avenue work
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Summary
At a Feb. 2 public hearing, the city presented an amended environmental determination to add a Larkin Avenue water‑main lining and service reconfiguration to the IEPA-funded Grand Prairie/Lake Michigan distribution project; officials said impacts will be temporary and several agencies returned unlikely‑to‑impact findings.
Crest Hill held a public hearing Feb. 2 to present an amended Preliminary Environmental Impacts Determination required by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for a multi‑phase water‑system improvement plan that would add a Larkin Avenue water‑main lining and service reconfiguration.
City Engineer Ron Wiedemann told the council the change would be included with the project plan submitted to the IEPA. “What we're adding is Larkin Avenue Watermain that will be included in our lining phase 4 extension,” Wiedemann said, outlining existing work on Broadway, Theodore Street and other lining phases and noting a planned 3.5‑million‑gallon ground storage tank and receiving stations.
Wiedemann said the Larkin Avenue work is proposed because of recurring issues in the area between Burger King and Popeye's and because crews will already be mobilized for lining work. He described the design as re‑routing some services so portions of the older main would be abandoned in place and retied behind buildings to minimize surface disruption.
Council members pressed for details on traffic and business access during construction. Wiedemann said most construction will occur behind structures and that temporary services will be run to maintain operations for restaurants and service businesses. “We have to run a temporary service to service both of those facilities while the construction's going on,” he said, adding that drive‑through access should remain open.
Wiedemann also said the city had consulted federal and state resource agencies; the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and other reviewers returned findings that the work is unlikely to have impacts on endangered‑species habitat or other protected resources. He said the environmental document is available for public inspection at the clerk’s office and that the comment period will close at the end of business Feb. 17, 2026.
The council opened and closed the hearing the same evening; no written or oral objections required changes during the meeting. The hearing record and the city's request for IEPA funding are the next steps in the process; the engineers said final construction timing will depend on funding, seasonal constraints and coordination with other lining phases.
The council listed the project documents and environmental determination in the clerk's office for residents to review and asked staff to forward public comments to Chris Covert, the IEPA project manager.
