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Homer Glen · Wastewater Treatment Plant

Homer Glen’s new sewage plant: what we know

Homer Glen is planning to build its own sewage treatment plant near 159th Street and Gougar Road, targeted for 2030. The Village needs it because Lockport, which treats some of the Village’s sewage under a 2018 agreement, has reportedly decided to end that arrangement around then. Land was bought in 2024 and an engineer is under contract — that part is confirmed. As far as the public record shows, residents haven’t been told the total cost, the rate impact, or where the idea actually came from.

Sewage
What it treats
Not drinking water — Illinois American Water still provides that
2030
Target completion
Per the Village’s own project update
$4M
Land purchased
~30 acres near 159th & Gougar — reported price, Oct. 2024 deed
2030
Lockport deal ends
Signed 2018, runs to Jan. 1 — the reason this project exists
?
Total plant cost
No public estimate as of this writing

Where Heidi stands

This is very likely a genuine, necessary infrastructure project — Heidi isn’t asking the Village to stop it. What she is asking for is what still hasn’t happened: a real cost estimate, a rate-impact estimate, a straight answer on septic hookups, and a Village that tells residents the whole story — including where this idea actually came from — instead of leaving them to piece it together from an old newsletter and a contracts page.

What’s actually being built

This project treats sewage (wastewater) only — it does not change who provides Homer Glen’s drinking water. Illinois American Water remains the Village’s water utility either way. The two are easy to mix up because IAW also separately owns three older wastewater plants in the area, but the Village’s new plant is a different, Village-owned facility.

The reason it exists: under a 2018 intergovernmental agreement, Homer Glen, the City of Lockport, and the Bonnie Brae–Forest Manor Sanitary District arranged for some Village sewage to be treated at Lockport’s Bonnie Brae plant. That agreement runs to January 1, 2030, and Lockport has reportedly moved to end the arrangement around then. Without its own plant, the Village would need a new outside provider — or lose sewer capacity outright.

Where the idea came from

No single Village communication lays out this history in one place. Here’s what we found by going back through the record ourselves.

The earliest public reference we’ve found is in the Village’s own Spring/Summer 2023 newsletter, where then-Village Manager Carmen Maurella announced he had put a team together to pursue Village ownership and operation of its own wastewater facility so the Village would no longer depend on neighboring communities for treatment. That was published before Christina Neitzke-Troike was Mayor — at the time she was still Village Clerk, and Maurella served under then-Mayor George Yukich. That same spring, in an April 3, 2023 election preview, trustee candidate Ruben Pazmino — who was running against Neitzke-Troike’s slate, not with it — said much the same thing about Village sewer service: “There was always an understanding that the Village would eventually develop its own system.” Both sides of that year’s election were saying it independently. This wasn’t one person’s idea, and it wasn’t this administration’s — but Maurella is the one who put a task force on it.

To be clear: Maurella didn’t build the plant — he resigned in August 2023. Every concrete step since — the engineering study, the land purchase, the deed, the design contract — was voted through by the Village Board in 2024 and 2025 and carried out under Village Manager Joe Baber. Mayor Neitzke-Troike presides over those meetings, but under Illinois law a village president ordinarily votes only to break a tie — so the votes that built this project belong to the trustees. Credit for starting the effort, credit for the votes, and accountability for telling residents what it will cost belong to different people — and Homer Glen residents deserve the whole story.

How we got here

2018
Homer Glen, the City of Lockport, and the Bonnie Brae–Forest Manor Sanitary District sign a 3-party intergovernmental agreement under which some of the Village’s sewage is treated at Lockport’s Bonnie Brae plant. The initial term runs to January 1, 2030.
Spring 2023 (before the April 4 election)
In the Village’s official newsletter, Village Manager Carmen Maurella announces he has put a team together to pursue Village ownership and operation of its own wastewater facility — the earliest public reference we have found to a Village-owned plant as a specific initiative, published under then-Mayor George Yukich’s administration. The newsletter is dated only “Spring/Summer 2023,” but discusses that year’s election as still upcoming, so it was distributed before April 4.
April 3, 2023
In a Patch election preview, trustee candidate Ruben Pazmino says of Village sewer service: “There was always an understanding that the Village would eventually develop its own system.” Pazmino was running against Christina Neitzke-Troike’s slate, not with it — this was a shared, cross-camp understanding, not one person’s idea.
April 20, 2023
Lockport moves to end wastewater treatment service to the area by 2030, reportedly because its Bonnie Brae plant is at the end of its useful life.
April 26, 2023
Christina Neitzke-Troike is sworn in as Mayor, succeeding George Yukich. She was previously Village Clerk.
August 2023
Carmen Maurella resigns as Village Manager. Mayor Neitzke-Troike appoints Joe Baber as interim Village Manager.
February 20, 2024
Under the Baber administration, the Village contracts with HR Green for a wastewater treatment facilities site study.
June 25, 2024
Ordinance 24-033 authorizes the Village’s purchase agreement for roughly 30 acres near 159th Street & Gougar Road for a future plant site.
October 2024
The warranty deed for the parcel is recorded. Reported purchase price: $4,000,000.
January 7, 2025
The Village signs a professional services agreement with HR Green for the plant’s formal Project Plan — the document that will define its size, service area, and cost.
2026
The Village’s own project update lists a target completion date of 2030. Total cost, capacity, and rate impact have not been made public.

What the Village hasn’t said

We checked the Mayor’s most recent newsletter column (Spring/Summer 2026) and found no mention of this project at all — it covers a separate issue, her opposition to an Illinois American Water rate increase. We found no press release from her administration announcing the land purchase or the engineering contract, and no public accounting of what the plant will actually cost.

Specifically undisclosed, as of this writing:

  • Total project cost
  • Plant capacity and service area
  • Projected sewer rate impact
  • Connection or tap-on fees
  • Whether homes currently on septic could be required to connect — and at what cost

Questions & answers

Is the Village taking over my drinking water?
No. This project treats sewage (wastewater) only. Illinois American Water remains Homer Glen’s drinking-water provider — that does not change. The confusion is understandable: Illinois American Water also separately owns three older wastewater plants in the area (Oak Valley, Derby Meadows, Chickasaw Hills). Those are a different matter from the Village’s own new plant.
Why does Homer Glen need to build its own plant at all?
Under a 2018 agreement, Lockport treats some of the Village’s sewage. That agreement runs to January 1, 2030, and Lockport has reportedly moved to end the arrangement around then, saying its own plant is at the end of its useful life. Without its own facility, the Village would need a new outside provider — or would lose sewer capacity it needs for existing homes and businesses, not just future growth.
Whose idea was this?
The earliest public reference we’ve found is in the Village’s own Spring/Summer 2023 newsletter — published before Christina Neitzke-Troike became Mayor — where then-Village Manager Carmen Maurella announced he had put a team together to pursue a Village-owned plant. That same spring, in an April 3, 2023 election preview, then-trustee candidate Ruben Pazmino — running against Mayor Neitzke-Troike’s slate, not with it — said much the same thing: that a Village-owned system had “always” been expected. So this wasn’t one person’s idea, and it wasn’t this administration’s: it was already understood across political lines before the current administration took office. What we haven’t found is any Village communication, under any mayor, that has laid this history out for residents since.
So did the current administration start this project?
The idea predates it — Village Manager Carmen Maurella had publicly put a team on a Village-owned plant by spring 2023, before Mayor Neitzke-Troike took office. Every concrete step toward an actual plant — the HR Green site study, the land purchase, the deed, the engineering contract — was approved by Village Board votes in 2024 and 2025, more than a year after Maurella left, and carried out under Village Manager Joe Baber. Worth knowing: under Illinois law a village president ordinarily votes only to break a tie, so those approvals belong to the Board of Trustees, not to the Mayor personally. Maurella gets credit for starting it; the Board and Village staff did the building; and the Mayor’s own lane — telling residents what this project costs and where it came from — is the part that still hasn’t happened.
Has Mayor Neitzke-Troike talked about this project?
Not that we’ve found. Her most recent Message from the Mayor in the Village newsletter (Spring/Summer 2026) doesn’t mention the wastewater plant at all — it covers a separate matter, her opposition to an Illinois American Water rate increase. We haven’t located any press release or public statement from her administration explaining the plant’s cost, size, or timeline to residents directly.
Is this connected to the 159th Street rezoning fight?
The plant site and the proposed 159th Street rezoning are in the same general area, but we have not found any document connecting them, and the Village itself has formally gone on record opposing the nearby rezoning (Resolution 26-014). We’re not going to imply a link the record doesn’t support.
Will my sewer bill go up?
We don’t know, and neither does the public record. The Village hasn’t published a total project cost, a plant capacity, a proposed rate schedule, or any connection/tap fees. The only financing path mentioned anywhere in the public record is a low-interest state loan through the Illinois EPA’s revolving fund program — no bond, no total cost, and no rate impact has been disclosed.
Could I be required to connect if I’m on a septic system?
We found no ordinance, study, or public statement addressing this either way. It’s an open question the Village should answer before, not after, building the plant.
Why wouldn’t residents get a vote on something this size?
Homer Glen is a home-rule municipality under Illinois law, which generally allows the Village Board to approve spending — and, later, borrowing — without a public referendum. That’s legal, and it’s how most large Illinois municipalities operate. It also means the Village Board’s own votes are the only check that exists, which is exactly why the public deserves a clear cost figure and a real explanation before those votes happen, not after.
What does Heidi think should happen?
A Village-owned plant is very likely a genuine, necessary infrastructure need — this isn’t a project Heidi is asking the Village to cancel. What she is asking for is what still hasn’t happened: a real cost estimate, a rate-impact estimate, an answer on septic homes, and a Village that tells residents where this project actually came from and where it’s going — instead of leaving it for people to piece together from an old newsletter and a contracts register.
Sources
  1. Village of Homer Glen — Spring/Summer 2023 newsletter, “Carmen’s Corner” (p. 3, Village Manager Carmen Maurella’s column announcing the wastewater-facility team). homerglenil.org (PDF)
  2. Patch — “2 Slates Face Off For Homer Glen Village Trustee, Clerk: Election 2023” (Ruben Pazmino quote, April 3, 2023). patch.com
  3. Patch — “New Homer Glen Mayor, Trustees Sworn In Wednesday” (April 26, 2023 — confirms Neitzke-Troike’s swearing-in and Yukich’s final meeting). patch.com
  4. Patch — Homer Glen Village Manager resignation coverage (August 2023). patch.com
  5. Patch — “Lockport Will Terminate Waste Water Agreement With Homer Glen” (April 20, 2023). patch.com
  6. Village of Homer Glen — Major Contracts & Agreements register (HR Green site study, land purchase, Project Plan PSA). homerglenil.org
  7. Village of Homer Glen — detailed history of lake water and sewer service. homerglenil.org
  8. Village of Homer Glen — Mayor’s Office (confirms “Village President,” commonly called Mayor). homerglenil.org

Stay informed

We’ll update this page as the cost, capacity, and rate details become public.

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