City of DeKalb proposes $1M in COVID-19 relief money for lead-lined water service replacement

DeKALB - The city of DeKalb is proposing a plan to use $1 million in COVID-19 relief funds to replace about 200 lead-lined water service lines for DeKalb residents, according to city documents.

Outlined in a plan presented to the DeKalb City Council Monday, city staff are asking the council to consider using $1 million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars received in March 2021 for a lead service line replacement program. The city also plans to seek additional funds for service line replacement through the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

As part of the plan, in the fall of 2021, the city’s water department surveyed DeKalb residents who live in homes suspected of having water service lines that are lined with lead or if their line’s makeup was unknown. Letters were sent dated Oct. 29, 2021, to residents informing them that their home was identified as having an unknown water service line. The letter also instructed residents on how to identify their property line’s water service material makeup, according to documents obtained by the Daily Chronicle through the Freedom of Information Act.

According to that letter, DeKalb’s water system includes 10,700 water service lines. At the time the letters were sent in October, city records indicated that about 514 lines were made of lead. Most water lines in the city are lined with copper, according to the letter, and 794 lines were listed as unknown.

Results of that survey coupled with existing city records revealed about 200 lead service lines in DeKalb, as opposed to what city staff expected, which was nearly 500, according to city documents. According to a service material inventory record, there were 385 responses to the survey to help the city better identify the makeup of unknown service lines.

Records show surveys were sent to homes in dozens of DeKalb neighborhoods, including homes on Augusta Avenue, College Avenue, Cotton Avenue, Crane Avenue, DeKalb Avenue, Dodge Avenue, Eleventh Street, Ellwood Avenue, Elm Street, Evans Avenue, Fifth Street, North First Street, Disk Avenue, Fourteenth Street, Fourth Street, Franklin Street, Garden Street, Glidden Avenue, Gurler Street, Haish Boulevard, Harrison Street, Hickory Street, John Street, Leonard Avenue, Lewis Street, East Lincoln Highway, Linden Place, Locust Street, Maplewood Avenue, Market Street, Ninth Street, Normal Road, Oak Street, Park Avenue, Pearl Street, Pine Street, Pleasant Street, Pond Street, Prospect Street, Rolfe Road, Roosevelt Street, Second Street, Seventh STreet, Shipman Place, Sixth Street, State Street, Sixth Street, Sycamore Road, East Taylor Street, North 10th Street, Third Street, North 13th Street and North 12th Street.

Of those responses, 215 service lines remain unknown, 267 were identified as copper, and 44 were identified as lead.

The city’s proposal, if approved by the City Council – which was not expected to vote on the matter Monday – would set the funds aside to pay for replacement of lead service lines from the water main in the street, which is city-owned, to the shut-off boxes which are on private property.

“According to the [Centers for Disease and Control], there is no safe level of lead in drinking water so the main benefit to our residents would be the elimination of lead exposure in drinking water caused by lead service lines,” said Bryan Faivre, director of utilities and transportation for the city of DeKalb. “Eliminating the source of lead in drinking water is, without question, the best way to minimize lead exposure in drinking water.”

Lead service line sections on private property from a shut-off box to inside a home usually fall under the financial responsibility of the homeowner to replace. Similar to a grant-funded replacement program in Sycamore, the city of DeKalb’s plan could potentially lift that cost off the homeowner.

A Daily Chronicle investigation revealed DeKalb’s neighboring city of Sycamore, however, has been plagued by more prevalence of lead in the city’s drinking water. Recurring elevated lead levels in some Sycamore homes has caused closer scrutinization of the water system. As a result, the EPA is closely tracking Sycamore water and required the city of Sycamore to increase testing on water samples, which now occurs every six months.

In DeKalb, however, lead concerns don’t appear to be as prevalent, records show. That doesn’t mean lead service lines don’t exist in the city, however, and federal regulations will soon require replacement of them.

Faivre said the city has a long history of compliance with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for meeting expectations for water quality.

“Since the start of the Lead/Copper Regulations in 1991, DeKalb has never exceeded compliance with the rule,” Faivre said in an email to the Daily Chronicle. “Due to the city’s long history of compliance, the city was placed on a reduced monitoring schedule by the Illinois EPA which allows sampling to be conducted once every three years.”

Other considerations also impact the proposed plan, according to city staff. Faivre said federal and state governments began directing municipalities to prioritize full replacement of lead lines in water systems after the water crisis in Flint, Michigan came to the forefront.

The goal is to replace the entire lead-lined water service line, including the portion that’s privately owned to fully eliminate any potential lead exposure and harm.

“The city is still responsible for replacing the public portion of a lead service line, from the water main to the shut-off box, typically located near the sidewalk, without eliminating the private side of the lead service line,” Faivre said. “However the risk of lead exposure still exists and little would be accomplished.”

On Aug. 30, 2021, the Illinois Lead Service Line Notification and Replacement Act went into effect. It requires Illinois water systems to begin removal of lead service lines in their respective municipalities no later than Jan. 1, 2027. The Act also includes a requirement that Illinois cities must remove at least 7% of their lead service lines per year until all lead service lines are removed over a period of 15 years. By that math, city staff said that means about 15 service lines would need to be replaced per year over a 15-year period, document show.

The American Rescue Plan Act funding also needs to be spent by Dec. 31, 2026, with funds allocated out by the end of 2024, according to city documents.

The DeKalb City Council was asked Monday to weigh in on whether to move forward with a plan to fund lead service line replacement from the water main to the shutoff boxes on private property. According to city documents, replacement of about 200 service lines to the shutoff box would be about $700,000.

An additional plan could offer that plus a reimbursement to the property owner of $1,500 or half of the costs to replace additional service line replacement from the box to the residence, which is privately-owned. Replacement plus the residential incentive would be about $1 million.

Faivre said the city also plans to apply for additional funding through an IEPA forgivable loan to aid service line replacement, which could provide further reimbursement incentive to the homeowner beyond the outlined plan.

“Should the city be approved, we may be able to provide replacement of the lead service lines at little to no cost to a homeowner,” Faivre said. “This process can at times take a year or two before hearing back whether we are approved, so we may not know if the money will be available for some time.”