Officials break ground on project to bring Lake Michigan water to some west suburbs

OSWEGO, Ill. (WLS) -- Communities in the west suburbs are raising a glass to a new future water source.

After more than a decade of planning, leaders broke ground Wednesday on a massive infrastructure project they say will shape the region for generations.

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The current water supply was on track to run dry by 2050, putting nearly 90,000 families at risk. And while the new system comes with higher water rates, residents say access to clean Lake Michigan water is a price worth paying.

The new Waterlink project has been 11 years in the making. The nearly $400 million, 30-mile transmission main extension will bring Lake Michigan water to the residents, businesses and schools in Montgomery, Oswego and Yorkville.

The shift comes as officials say the aquifer they currently use to get water would run dry in the next few decades.

"This is the single most important investment or decision that any of us will ever make in elected office," Montgomery Village President Matt Brolley said.

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Community leaders say that new system will likely double the current water rates residents pay. But for those thinking about the next generation, clean water is priceless.

"We're going to live here for 20, 30 years, and our kids are going to grow up here. And you know, when we talk about potentially running out of clean water, no one wants to hear that," Oswego resident Kelly Bertog said.

Officials broke ground on the project, which includes multiple delivery points and requires complex infrastructure work spanning residential neighborhoods and roadways.

Bertog, a father of two, says he's proud to know his community is getting ahead of the problem.

"They're going to be taken care of because of all the people here that have been thinking about the clean water and making sure that my kids, and you know, ideally eventually grandkids will have access to clean drinking water," Bertog said.

"Where I live, I do have Lake Michigan water; it's definitely worth the rates that you pay for it," said John Rogan, who works in Oswego.

The new Waterlink system is expected to be up and running by 2028