Northbrook Stormwater Utility

Stormwater Utility Fees


Given the breadth and magnitude of the stormwater issues throughout Northbrook, the Village is addressing this as a community-wide program through the creation of a new Stormwater Utility Fund, which will provide a dedicated revenue source and allow for a full accounting of the operating, capital, and debt service costs associated with providing ongoing stormwater management services. The fee will be assessed at $1 per 1,000 gallons of water consumed. This fee will be solely dedicated to funding approximately $20 million in stormwater management projects which were developed as a part of the Village’s new Master Stormwater Management Plan and the ongoing maintenance of our stormwater management system. It is estimated this fee will add approximately $27 to the average quarterly residential water bill.

How the Stormwater Utility Fee is Spent


The Stormwater Utility Fee is accounted for in a special fund, the Stormwater Utility Fund. The is comprised of 3 main components:
  • Operations and Maintenance
  • Capital Improvements
  • Debt Service
The following graph illustrates how expenditures amongst these 3 categories are broken down:

Stormwater Utility Fund Budget by Category

Stormwater Utility Fund Budget By Category

What's Included in Each Category


A description of the expenditures included in each category is in the following categories:
  • Operations and Maintenance Costs - This category includes the operational costs for maintaining the storm sewer system including parts for lift stations, structure repairs, and televising the Village's storm sewers to identify where repairs may need to be made. This category also includes the salaries of Village employees assigned to maintaining the Village's stormwater system.
  • Capital Improvements - This category includes the design and construction of stormwater projects such as Phase III and IV of the Techny Drain Project and lining of existing storm sewers. This category also includes the purchase of capital equipment used for stormwater functions such as a replacement sewer cleaning machine.
  • Debt Service - This category includes principal and interest payments on debt issued to fund stormwater projects and other capital expenditures.
Residents have the opportunity to appeal the fee if they believe that metered water consumption is not directly related and proportional to the volume of stormwater runoff generated by the user's property. Below is an SOP and application to be used to make such an appeal.