MWRD Board Observer Reports

MWRD Board Holds 2 Special Meetings to Interview Candidates for the District’s Executive Director Position

10/31/2025

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board Meeting
October 16, 2025

Special meetings: 2 special meetings of the Board
The Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Chicago meet twice, once in the afternoon of October 16 and also on the morning of October 17th. The purpose of both meetings was to consider candidates to fill the vacancy in the office of MWRD Executive Director. The meetings were called to order and immediately closed for executive sessions. No action was taken by the Board following either executive session. The district is currently led by interim Executive Director John Murray. The previous Executive, Brian Perkovich, retired.

Board Action on October 16 at scheduled Board Meeting

Stormwater:

Item #39 25-0778 The Board agreed without discussion to pay the City of Markham to acquire a flood-prone property in an amount not to exceed $450,000.
Item #28 25-0773 The Board approved without discussion a contract with the engineering firm Bowman Consulting to design a flood control project in Northfield township in an amount not to exceed $2.2 million. That stormwater project, approved previously, will address a 3-mile corridor extending from Glenwood Ave. in Glenview to the Chicago River near Oakton Community College. It is intended to provide flood relief for 114 single and multi-family residences.

Real Estate:

Item #15 25-0752 Authorization to accept initial annual rental bid by Sanchez Group to lease 13 acres of District lands bordering the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal near the Stickney water treatment plant for a 39-year term for $396,084. This item was pulled for discussion by Commissioner Brady-Davis, who asked staff what benefit could come from allowing such a lengthy lease and how would the rent be adjusted during the least term? Staff replied that long-term leases were preferred so tenants could invest in improvements on the land. MWRD attorney Susan Morakalis explained rents are adjusted annually with the Consumer Price Index as benchmark and the property value is re-assessed every ten years. The item was returned to the consent agenda.
Item #19 25-0751 The Board authorized without discussion the sale of less than an acre of District land located at 6861 North Milwaukee Avenue in Niles, Illinois, setting a minimum sale price of $92,130. The parcel is part of the former Niles pumping station near the Des Plaines River.

Large purchases:

Item 25 25-0753 The Board approved without discussion awarding Kemira Water Solutions, Inc. a contract for $21.6 million to furnish and deliver to the District an unspecified amount of Ferric Chloride. The chemical is used in wastewater treatment for phosphate precipitation and as a coagulant as well as for odor control.

Forever Chemicals:

Item 33 25-0745. Authority to increase Contract 25-105-11 Laboratory Analysis of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Adsorbable Organic Fluorine in Wastewater samples to Enthalpy Analytical, LLC in an amount of $36,300 from $63,500 to an amount not to exceed $99,800. Commissioner Waller pulled this item from the agenda for discussion. She praised staff and the district for continuing to pursue research and sampling for PFAS chemicals and said that she looks forward to the ability for in-house testing with reports available to the public. The item was then returned to the consent agenda.

New Business:

President Steele told the Board plans were being made for celebration of the 125th anniversary of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, with details available soon.
Commissioner Davis thanked staff for their work in a ground-breaking wetland mitigation project in Sauk Village in Chicago’s southern suburbs.
The Water Reuse Association of Illinois recognized Commission Waller for her passion in the pursuit of a controlling IL law that will allow expanded re-use of treated water. The MWRD was given an award for its collective efforts.

Observer: Laurie Morse Commissioner Garcia absent Meeting length: 32 minutes

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Security for Fulton County Farm Site

9/25/2025

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Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board Meeting
Thursday, September 18, 2025

Board Action:

Item #20, 25-0689 accepted a contract for D & S Private Detective, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $259,999.80 to provide security for Fulton County Prairie Plan site. This site was a strip mine that is now being used to store bio-solids and also for research on phosphorus use. Tours are available for the public to see this site.
Item #22, 25-0693 promotes a 401(a) plan as an investment plan for employees to help with their pension.

Deferred or Deleted Agenda Items

Item #19, 25-0679 for a flood control project on Central Road was deleted.

New Business

Discussion and promotion for the conference WEF Tech that is coming to the McCormick Center. The Water Environment Federation Conference will have people from around the world attend and discuss the future of water and it’s use in our lives. This conference goes from 9/27 to 10/1.
Staff were commended on their drafting HB 2391 to harmonize MWRD’s authority for water reuse with the Illinois EPA.

All Commissioners in Attendance. No Executive Session Meeting Time: 50 minutes

Observer: Peggy Kell

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MWRD Thanked for Helping to Make the Chicago River Clean Enough for Swimming

9/12/2025

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Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board Meeting
August 14, 2025

In opening public comments, Tessa Murray of the Friends of the Chicago River announced the first annual Chicago River Open Water Swim, slated for September 21, and sponsored by the Friends. She thanked the Board for the vision and investment of the MWRD for making the river clean enough for human contact, saying even a decade ago such an event would have been unthinkable at a time when people considered the River an extension of the sewer system. She credited new EPA water quality standards enacted in 2018 and the MWRD’s compliance as instrumental in creating conditions allowing the first Chicago River swimming event in more than a century. She said access to swimmable rivers enhances recreation opportunities for all urban residents. In addition to swimming, the cleaner river now boasts 77 different species of fish.

Agenda Items Discussed

Commissioner Davis pulled agenda item 2. 25-0631 asking for a roll call vote and saying he intended to vote no on a motion to hire David Ormsby, Inc as public relations consultant for an additional year at a cost not to exceed $48,000. In discussion Commissioner Davis and Commissioner Waller said they thought the District would benefit from someone with different skills in this position. Commissioner Flynn countered, saying the firm was qualified. The motion passed, with Davis the only Commissioner to vote no.
Commissioner Davis also pulled agenda item 14. 25-0621 which authorized paying annual membership dues of $35,000 to the Chicago Area Waterways Chloride Workgroup. The Commissioner understood this was to be a temporary working group, and asked when it’s work, and the need for dues, would end. Staff explained the importance of the MWRD’s lead working with municipalities reducing salt impacts on waterways, and acting Executive Director Murray said he expected to group to continue indefinitely. The item was returned to the agenda and approved.
Commissioner Garcia pulled item 39. 25-647-11, a $1.2 million dollar boiler service contract without discussion, and asked for its deferral. The deferral passed in a roll call vote.

Items approved without discussion:
Stormwater Management

Item 17. 25-0590 The Board agreed to seek bids to purchase Rain Barrels at an estimated cost of $450,000.
Item 40. 25-0578 The Board awarded a $2.2 million contract to construct a Green Schoolyard Pilot project at Burnham Elementary School to Foundation Mechanics LLC and other partners. The project, which combines stormwater management with a new playground in Burham, was approved to go out for bid at the October 17, 2024 Board meeting.
Item 18. 25-0593 The Board agreed to seek bids to rehabilitate the Upper Des Plaines Intercepting Sewer at a cost between $16.1 and 19.5 million dollars.

Pollution Control-Phosphorus Removal

Item 48. 25-0609 The Board agreed to increase the amount of a previously contract award to IHC Construction Companies LLC to modify phosphorus removal equipment at Battery D of the O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant, to $15.5 million from the previous $15.4 million; an increase of $117,170,72.

New Business

President Steele announced three ribbon-cutting events celebrating MWRD project completions, including a dam removal at Salt Creek in DuPage County; completion of a new levy providing flood relief to 29 structures in Glenwood; and green alley stormwater management projects in Markham.

Observer: Laurie Morse No Executive Session Held All 9 commissioners in attendance

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Board Approves Resolution to Advance Reuse of Treated Water

7/30/2025

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Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board Meeting

July 17, 2025

The Board approved a resolution calling for the advancement of water reuse in a practical, cost-effective, and phased-in manner and called for the following sequence of actions:

Conduct a targeted survey of potential non-potable reuse customers within one year of approval with the goal of identifying at least one viable pilot reuse study.
If a viable reuse project is identified, it will be presented to the MWRD Board for consideration and approval to negotiate an agreement with customers and stakeholders and initiated within 36 months from the conclusion of the study.
Actively pursue external funding sources and cost-sharing arrangements.

Stated in the resolution: The District’s treated effluent (water) is often already of sufficient quality for use in irrigation, commercial, and industrial applications and the Kirie and Egan water treatment plants are currently providing their effluent to local park districts. #3 25-0562

Deleted or Deferred Items

#20 25-0507 Deleted by the E.D. Authority to advertise for bids for Roof Replacement and Rehabilitation at various locations. Estimated cost between $3.9 and $4.7 million.
#43 25-0535 Deferred by V.P. Flynn for boiler tuning and maintenance services at $1.2 million.
#46 25-0490 2nd Deferral by President Steele for a $1.2 million increase to a $39.9 million contract for Street Conduit rehabilitation. Required a voice vote for 2nd deferral.

Other Approved Agenda Items

Advertise for State Legislative Consulting Services, at an estimated cost of $100,00 (four separate contracts in an amount not to exceed $25,000 annually). Flynn asked for information on what specialized professional services do not require RFPs. #18 25-0504
Issue contract for lab analysis of Per and Poly (PFAS) substances and organic fluorine in wastewater samples to Enthalpy Analytical, LLC at $63,500. Davis requested that the M&R Department look into accreditation and certification for this type of services through universities and can this be incorporated into the university master agreements #34 25-0536
Agree to enter into a collaborative research project with the U. of Ill. on the environmental benefits and use of biosolids for production of Industrial Hemp at an estimated cost of $90,261. This item was deleted in June. Flynn is a big supporter of researching the benefits of hemp and its possible use for mitigating PFAS chemicals. #35 25-0538
Report on the 2024 annual Comprehensive Finance Report of the MWRD’s Retirement Fund which was valued at $1.69B. Overall, the fund is in excellent shape because the investment market has risen significantly since the Covid years. The Fund Manager recommends diversification with less emphasis on Stock equity. #56 25-0548

Other Items of Interest:

At the beginning of the meeting, Com Ed presented the MWRD with a check for $423,222 representing the value of the incentives from participating in the utility’s program since 2019. Com Ed wants to add the Stickney Plant to the other four in the program which has saved 7 gigawatt hours - enough to serve 800 homes for a year and reduce the carbon output by 5 million pounds.

Observer - Diane Edmundson

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MWRD Board Quickly Deals with Agenda

7/1/2025

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Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board Meeting
June 26, 2025

In 30 minutes, the Board dealt with the 29 agenda items with some limited discussion.
Absent: Commissioners Precious Brady-Davis and Yumeka Brown.

Items deleted (no reason stated) from the agenda by Acting Executive Director Murphy:

A proposal to enter into a Collaborative Research Project with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne pursuant to a Master Agreement on the Environmental Benefits and Use of Biosolids for Production of Industrial Hemp with an estimated cost of $90,261. File 25-0473, Agenda # 15.
A proposed purchase order for Laboratory Analysis of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Adsorbable Organic Fluorine in Wastewater Samples to Enthalpy Analytical for up to $63,500. File 25-0495, Agenda #20.

Items deferred:

Comm. Waller deferred the Authority to advertise a furnishing and delivering contract for ferric chloride with an estimated cost of $22.5 M. She is looking for a comparison report to be provided. President Steele confirmed with Mr. Murphy that this deferral would not delay any testing. File 25-0485, Agenda #11.
Commissioner Garcia deferred the item to increase a contract with Michels Trenchless for 39th Street Conduit Rehabilitation by an amount of $1.25 M. File 25-0490, Agenda # 25.

The remaining 25 items were approved, with 2 discussed:

Comm. Waller asked about the recent history of compliance with the Environmental Protection Act (EPA) by Tradebe Environmental Services which is to provide hazardous waste disposal from various MWRD locations under a new contract. Assurances were given that while there had been some violations, these were relatively minor and the vendor had fully cooperated with the EPA. File 25-0488, Agenda # 22.
Comm. Davis asked for a sense of when, after negotiations, the intergovernmental agreements would be signed and projects commenced for the stormwater partnership projects submitted by municipalities that made the list of possible projects. Mr. Murphy said the next step will be to come to the Board for approval to negotiate agreements and hopefully some of these will move toward construction within a year. File 25-0491, Agenda # 28.

New Business:

Vice President Flynn promoted “Plastic-free July” at the MWRD.
President Steele announced that Comm. Brady-Davis would be attending a Harvard Executive Program in July.

There was no Executive Session.

Observer: Priscilla Mims

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MWRD Board Meeting Showcased Pride Month and Puerto Rican Pride Day

6/20/2025

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Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD)
Board Meeting
June 5, 2025

Agenda Items:

#1 (25-0416) The text of the Pride Month statement was read into the record. Commissioner Precious-Brady Davis spoke recalling the history of Stone Wall and thanked the Chicago Parks Foundation for the installation of an AIDS Garden. Commissioner Garcia added his thanks to the director of the Chicago Parks Foundation.
#3-(25-0442) Commissioner Garcia spoke to the celebration of Puerto Rican Pride Day and reminded the audience that there are 250,000 Puerto Ricans in Chicago.
#5(25-0404) Results of the 2024 Annual Comprehensive financial Report of the MWRD of Greater Chicago and of the MWRD Retiree HealthCare Trust audits were presented by Adelfia. The financial information was deemed reliable and no issues arose in the process.
#24-(25-0440) Commissioner Flynn questioned why there was an annual $5000 fee for the Blue Island Fire Department’s use of one acre of land for training purposes. It is currently a parking lot. Answer: public access is the key. The use will no longer allow public access and thus, a fee must be assessed.
#27-(25-0445) Resolution: Commissioner Davis stated that building the ecological health of waterways is not just for recreation. We need a clean river from the bottom up. He thanked the Friends of Chicago River and many other organizations involved in advancing Chicago Area Waterway System Ecological Health.

New Business:

Commissioner Waller: reported that HB2516 (PFAS ban on certain products including personal care) was passed in the General Assembly.

Executive Session: None Meeting length: 77 minutes
Observer: Georgia Gebhardt

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<<Previous

MWRD Board Holds 2 Special Meetings to Interview Candidates for the District’s Executive Director Position

Security for Fulton County Farm Site

MWRD Thanked for Helping to Make the Chicago River Clean Enough for Swimming

Board Approves Resolution to Advance Reuse of Treated Water

MWRD Board Quickly Deals with Agenda

MWRD Board Meeting Showcased Pride Month and Puerto Rican Pride Day

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