BOURBONNAIS – Aqua Illinois announced Tuesday afternoon the completion of new capital upgrades in Kankakee County totaling $3.8 million dollars in investments to regional infrastructure in the area.
The infrastructure upgrades, put in place to develop a sewer master plan to serve the area of the new Bourbonnais Interchange, will aid in the development of industrial, commercial, and residential growth in the area. The work was completed as part of a public-private partnership with local municipalities.
“Aqua Illinois is committed to ongoing investment in our water and wastewater systems for the benefit of the communities we serve, to improve service and reliability for our friends and neighbors,” said Aqua Illinois President Craig Blanchette. “In addition, when a project ties into larger infrastructure improvement work and its resulting economic benefits, it is truly a win-win.”
The latest upgrades to lines will allow water and service to the newly developed I-57 interchange. Both the Village of Manteno and Village of Bourbonnais worked with Aqua to complete the infrastructure additions over the course of the last few years.
“As a development-friendly municipality, we understood the importance of having utilities readily available at the new Bourbonnais Parkway Interchange,” said Village of Bourbonnais President Paul Schore. “The infrastructure investment with Aqua Illinois aids in advancing the growth and proactively meeting the future needs of our region.”
During the past month, Aqua completed the construction of a new sewer interceptor to provide service to the area between I-57 and Route 50 (west to east) and between the Village of Manteno and 5000 N Road in Bourbonnais (north to south). Additional water and sewer improvements and upgrades were also completed to ensure quality water and reliable service.
“The extension of wastewater services from the Manteno treatment facility to the Bourbonnais Parkway area by Aqua is a huge benefit for the region,” said Manteno Mayor Tim Nugent. “This multi-million-dollar investment by Aqua Illinois will open the east side of Exit 318 for industrial and commercial development. This is another example of local utilities helping promote economic development in the Manteno and Bourbonnais region that will benefit all of Kankakee County. Aqua Illinois has been a great partner and has shown their willingness to make investments in infrastructure that will benefit all of their customers.”
The company first announced additional improvements for the I-57 project in 2014 when it invested $6.6 million to construct a new water main between the villages of Bourbonnais and Manteno along Illinois State Route 45 for the purposes of bolstering the water distribution system grid in northern Kankakee County.
The new I-57 interchange opened in November 2018.
