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Village of Saint Charles to apply for state loans to replace galvanized/lead services and aging water mains
Summary
The council voted to submit two State Revolving Fund project-plan applications targeting 53 galvanized/lead service lines and about 1.5 miles of cast-iron water mains (roughly 30 services). Staff estimated the loan requests at about $534,000 and $2.22 million and described timelines, household cost framing and environmental-review steps.
A public hearing and vote Monday cleared the Village of Saint Charles to apply for two state revolving fund (SRF) loans aimed at removing galvanized and legacy lead service lines and replacing aging water mains in an older neighborhood.
Spicer engineer Alison Alexander told the council the applications separate two elements because of grant rules: one plan focuses on verified galvanized/lead services (53 services identified in this application) and the other targets about 1.5 miles of cast-iron water main and about 30 attached services. "The primary driver of both of these projects is lead service line replacement," Alexander said, describing galvanized services as a continuing compliance concern under the federal lead-and-copper rule.
Alexander estimated the service-only project at about $534,000 and the combined mains-and-services project at about $2.22 million, each priced with a 20-year amortization at roughly 2% interest under the SRF program. As an affordability illustration, the engineer framed the first project's share as about $8 per quarter per residential equivalent unit (REU) and the larger project as roughly $33.86 per quarter per REU if costs were distributed evenly across customers.
The council opened the hearing for public comment and reviewed construction impacts staff described as typical for buried utility work: temporary traffic interruptions, short water-service outages during reconnections and sediment-control measures during excavation. Staff said the village will provide environmental-review copies to residents who sign a hearing sheet, and that the state scoring process (applications are due June 1) could award money for one or both projects or only the lead-service work.
By roll call, the council approved submitting the project-plan applications and accompanying village resolutions. Council members voted unanimously to move forward with the SRF applications and directed staff to finalize materials for the June 1 submission. If both plans win funding, the state has indicated it can merge them into a single loan to simplify administration, staff said.
Next steps: staff will incorporate public comments into the final packages, file the applications by the end of the month and expect award notifications in the fall; construction could begin as early as spring 2027 if the loans are approved and design proceeds on the expedited schedule.
