Crest Hill aims for lower electric bills

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Updated: September 29, 2011 12:55AM

CREST HILL — In an effort to reduce residential energy costs, the city council adopted a plan for power aggregation.

“This is a way for our residents to save some money on their electric bill,” said Mayor Ray Soliman.

Aggregation involves joining with other municipalities to negotiate a lower rate for power. Crest Hill residents may see about $800,000 total savings — about $125 per household.

Any resident may opt out at any time to choose another supplier. However, Soliman warned that people should be careful to read the fine print of any contract before they sign.

Due to the amount of power the group of municipalities will be using, it would be surprising if an individual could get a cheaper price.

City Treasurer Joe Bobikiewicz noted that fees may be assessed, but it is undetermined how much.

“The savings that we make on the rate reduction will be absorbed some by these ancillary fees, these brokerage fees,” he said.

Sewers rehabilitation

The council is accepting public comments through the end of the month about the proposed sewer rehabilitation. It will cost more than $6 million to upgrade 135,000 feet. The upgrade will add more than 50 years to the life of the system, and reduce excess charges and higher energy costs, Soliman said.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will loan the city the total amount, and forgive 25 percent of the principal. The annual repayment will be $256,791 at 1.25 percent interest, Soliman said.

This amount is already in the overall budget. It will be paid by existing water and sewer users, he said. The IEPA determined that the upgrade’s benefits far outweigh the impact of noise and traffic interruptions.