Warrenville "State of the City"

I attended Mayor Brummel’s “State of the City” address hosted by the Warrenville Chamber of Commerce at the Courtyard Banquets. It was an overview of what was accomplished last year, and the general plans for 2009.

One very important thing to note is that Warrenville is not operating in debt. Projects and purchases are made with city cash, so there are no additional debt servicing payments. Even though these are some tough economic times, and the city has had to scale back or postpone some projects, overall Warrenville is in good financial shape.

I think this is in no small part due to the mayor and city council being prudent in their spending, and they deserve some credit for that. On a side note, in the upcoming city elections, the mayor and all city council members are running unopposed.

Some major projects/initiatives for this year include funding TIF #3, construction of a sidewalk on the south side of Galusha road, implementing a citywide bike & pedestrian plan, continued construction of the new Hubble Middle School and the next phase of the Warrenville Road resurfacing with permeable pavers. The use of these pavers has brought environmental recognition to the city of Warrenville!

The DuPage river cleanup should continue despite the fact that Tronox, the company that acquired Kerr-McGee, has declared bankruptcy. It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out this year. The Forest Preserve purchased the Cenacle Property on Batavia Road, and has plans to build a River ecology education center on the site. This is just one more piece of open space for Warrenville to enjoy!

There were two flooding events this year, and the city hired Strand & Associates to do a study on how future flooding can be prevented. The study is being done in a phased approach, so the total cost of the study itself, or the cost of implementing any of its recommendations won’t be known for a while. I have a friend on Williams Road who suffered some major flooding damage, so preventing it from happening again, if possible, is very important.

I walked away from this event with a positive outlook for the new year, that and a full belly from the delicious food provided!

Related Links: Mayor Brummel's Warrenville State of the City Address