Village of New Lennox approves infrastructure contracts, SSAs and community solar subscription

The Village of New Lennox board approved a series of bids, contract extensions and ordinances covering water and sewer projects, municipal services and energy supply at its meeting.

Infrastructure and contracting highlights: staff reported the lowest responsible bidder for Cooper and Wood streets water main replacement was PT Pharaoh with a bid of $1,871,327; the board approved awarding the contract contingent on expected IEPA loan approval. The board also approved a design contract for northeast quadrant water main replacement (Christopher Burke Engineering) with bidding planned for fall 2026 and construction in spring 2027. For sanitary sewer reconditioning, staff recommended and the board approved renewing the slip‑lining contract for one year with Vision Sewer with a not‑to‑exceed amount of $225,000 and a 3.2% increase tied to regional CPI.

Facilities and services: trustees approved a new janitorial agreement for the police department with Advanced Building Maintenance at $2,600 per month through April 30, 2027, after the prior vendor failed to meet performance standards and stopped providing service. The board authorized a change order to add a professionally fabricated safety railing at a sports complex field to eliminate an 8‑inch drop behind home plate at a cost of about $24,158 (staff compared this to an in‑house option that would be roughly $3,000 higher). The board also approved seasonal and routine service proposals for the Crossroads Sports Complex, including a use license with the Northern Illinois Soccer League (expected field rental revenue noted as $10,700), kitchen cleaning services (annual amount unclear in the transcript) and glass cleaning services at $700 per month ($8,400 per year).

Special Service Areas: after the 60‑day public hearing period with no objections, the board adopted ordinances establishing Special Service Areas 37 and 38 (Lakes Park subdivision and Lakes Park townhomes) and 39 and 40 (Tierling Lakes Phase 1 and Tierling Lakes Amenities). Each ordinance was adopted by separate roll call votes.

Community solar subscription: staff presented an Illinois Shines community solar subscription (Sun Central LLC) intended to supply roughly 70% of village electric accounts at a supply rate 20% below ComEd; staff estimated it could save the village "probably over $100,000 a year up to $190,000" depending on ComEd rates. The subscription term is initially 10 years with two automatic five‑year renewals; the program is expected to begin deliveries at the end of 2027 and the board approved participating.

Finance approvals: trustees approved monthly disbursements and payroll reported in the meeting ($4,568,578.66 in disbursements; payroll of $547,463.48 paid Oct. 17, 2025).

What passed (at a glance): • Bid award: Cooper & Wood streets water main replacement — PT Pharaoh — $1,871,327 (approved; subject to IEPA loan) • Design contract: northeast quadrant water main — Christopher Burke Engineering (approved) • Slip‑lining contract extension: Vision Sewer — extend 1 year, increase ~3.2%, not to exceed $225,000 (approved) • Police department janitorial services — Advanced Building Maintenance — $2,600/month (approved) • Safety railing change order (sports complex) — ~$24,158 (approved) • Special Service Areas: Ordinances adopted for SSA 37, 38, 39, 40 (approved) • Community solar subscription: Sun Central LLC — 10‑year subscription with two 5‑year renewals, program start expected end of 2027 (approved) • Use license: Northern Illinois Soccer League — tournament rentals ~ $10,700 (approved) • Glass cleaning: Divine Shine — $700/month ($8,400/year) (approved)

The board discussed but did not finalize final approvals requiring additional technical or engineering follow‑up; several items approved were contingent on final engineering, loan approvals, or standard contract contingencies.