DAVIS JUNCTION – A public hearing on Tuesday night was the culmination of a grant that was awarded to the Village of Davis Junction in 2023. Matt Hansen of Willet, Hoffman & Associates presented the proposed improvements to unsewered rural subdivisions near Illinois Route 72 and I-39. The project was presented in two phases, with the goal of connecting 142 homes and three businesses to the existing sewer system in the village. Hansen said that the state is the one driving communities to explore getting as many residents off of septic systems.
“Some of these rural areas still have a high density of septic systems,” he said. “If they’re in areas where you have wells next to them, they’re just trying to protect people’s drinking water by getting them on a centralized sewer system.”
( Matt Hansen of Willet, Hoffman & Associates explains the details of the proposed sewer expansion )
The projected cost would total well over the potential $10 million in grants from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency they could possibly be eligible for, and that would not include any reimbursement for property owners who would have to pay for their own connection to the new sewer lines. Rates would be more for those with the new sewer system, averaging around $75 per month, as opposed to current Davis Junction residents, who pay under $30 per month.
These plans were in part spurred by a request from the IEPA and residents of Knoll’s Edge Subdivision, an area located east of I-39 and north of the Monroe Center Oasis. The project seemed unlikely to go forward due to the financial burden it would put upon Davis Junction, according to Village President Rick Wurm.
“Short of the state coming up with that funding, that project will not happen on village funds,” he said.
