Infrastructure for the city of Yorkville’s Lake Michigan water sourcing project is reaching new heights – 138 feet to be exact.

The city advanced the extensive water infrastructure overhaul near Illinois Route 126.

The infrastructure, which includes a new water tower stretching 138 feet tall, is part of the larger Lake Michigan water sourcing project that has the city eyeing around $224.4 million in total project costs.

A Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan can support $179.5 million of those costs, leaving the remaining 20% to be financed through Yorkville’s bond issuance and Illinois Environmental Protection Agency loan proceeds.

The city acquired a 4.03-acre parcel of land from Restore Church, Inc. located directly north of Route 126, east of Wing Road, and south of Illinois Route 71.

City council approved rezoning the land during its Dec. 9 meeting to enable the construction of the water tower, also called a “standpipe,” and the south receiving station building.

The site will also house a DuPage Water Commission metering building.

“The church has been fantastic to work with,” Mayor John Purcell said during the meeting.

The site was desired by the city for development of the water infrastructure because of the city’s “immediate need for a reliable long-term water supply source as well as the length of time the area has remained undeveloped,” according to city documents.

The total infrastructure project at the site is expected to cost around $6.8 million. The south receiving station building will be around 26 feet tall and the DuPage Water Commission metering station will be around 14 feet tall.

During the Dec. 9 meeting the city also approved an Illinois Department of Transportation highway permit allowing the city to compete a section of water main work under Route 126 as part of the overall project.

The city is beginning construction on the underground work over the winter.

The underground water main work is necessary to extend the city’s water infrastructure to the site of the south receiving site and the new water tower.

City engineers previously said the new water tower will help ensure the Lake Michigan water is distributed evenly throughout town.

The city is in a hurry to finish all water infrastructure necessary for the Lake Michigan water sourcing project to receive the first water down the pipeline in the summer 2028.

To make this happen, all parts of the project need to be completed by 2027.

The city said the transition was necessary to sustainably accommodate the area’s booming population.

The DuPage Water Commission, which Yorkville and partnering towns Oswego and Montgomery are hooking up to for water, requires participating towns hold two times the storage as the city’s average daily water use.

To help offset the costs of the water infrastructure, the city recently approved higher water rates for users. Residents will face around 20% annual increases for at least five years.

On the other end of town, the North Receiving Station and Storage Tank Project is running up a $18.63 million price tag, and will significantly increase the city’s water intake capacities.

This project includes constructing the Grande Reserve Water Treatment Plant and a two-million-gallon water tank on Eldamain Road, north of Corneils Road.

To begin construction on next year’s legs of the northern project, the city applied for and received a $5.39 million IEPA loan, at a fixed interest rate of 2.16% over 30 years.