Thornton Provisional Reservoir Status Discussed at MWRD Board Meeting

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Board Meeting
June 17, 2021

The MWRD Board agenda began at 10:30.  All commissioners were eventually present. 
There were no public speakers.   Auditors presented their findings for the MWRD and the MWRD Retiree Health Care Trust financial statements for 2020.  There are no material weaknesses, and the MWRD is in stable financial condition.
Commissioners asked for a number of items to be discussed, but in the end, there were two significant discussions:

• Item 21-0494 was singled out by several commissioners, having to do with annual dues membership to Current Innovation, NFP.  Com. Garcia wondered if the MWRD was getting much from the membership.  Com. Shore explained the background of MWRD’s relationship to Current Innovation:  There is no economic development department at the MWRD to attract businesses and organizations that highly value clean water, and that this group was recommended by World Business Chicago, as a combination of academia, business contacts, and venture capital to be able to provide the MWRD the ability to attract the attention of water-oriented businesses.  Coms. Garcia and Pres. Steele appreciated the history but asked Exec. Dir. Perkovich to report results from the membership in the next year.
• Item 21-0508 is a fifth attempt at issuing a contract to decommission the Thornton Provisional Reservoir, in critical use from 2003 to 2015 until the Composite Reservoir came on line.  No contractors bid on the project when it was put out to bid four times before.  This contract should cost between $21 Million and $25.4 Million.    The scope has been limited now to decommission after a “plug” will be put in the tunnel connecting the transitional reservoir with the Composite.  The Transitional holds 3.6 billion gallons of water while the new Composite holds 7.9 billion gallons.  The worst rain event occurred in 2008 when 9.5 inches fell in one day, and the Transitional was filled to capacity.  Since then neither has been filled.  Dr. Katherine O’Connor in Engineering reported the MWRD is using updated rainfall estimates and has calculated they do not need the temporary reservoir.  It rained 3 inches in 15 minutes in South Holland July 29, 2016, and the reservoir did not fill but residents had extensive flooding.  This point to the need for remediation more locally like bioswales and disconnected downspouts from the combined sewer.  The combined sewer pipes are not wide enough to carry all the water to the reservoir.  This item is deferred.   
  

Other discussed items follow:

• Item 21-0515 was deferred by request of Com. McGowan to research more about minority contracting within the nearly $5 Million mechanical contract over three years.
• Item 21-0549 refers to pre-employment psychological testing for police candidates.  Com. Spyropoulos suggested the MWRD research economies of scale with other city and county agencies performing the same testing.
• Item 21-0545 refers to Green Alley Reconstruction in Westchester for $675 K.  Coms. McGowan, Garcia and Corral-Sepulveda were interested in minority contracting with the Village of Westchester.  

All items were passed with the exception of the two deferred contracts.
Amy Little - Observer