Village Looks to Lure Homebuilders

The recession brought the housing boom of the early to mid-2000s to a screeching halt. Now, the village is looking at ways to revive the housing marketing by offering breaks for residential developers.

On Wednesday, trustees will vote on a resolution that would create the Build Romeoville program, aimed at bringing more rooftops to the village.

Under the resolution, the village would slash permit fees on new homes by up to $5,000.

"Basically, it's an overall reduction on residential new building permits," said Mayor John Noak. 

In return, developers who wish to take part in the program would have to agree to spend at least $5,000 per year to advertise their Romeoville developments. Additionally, village staff would have the authority to review fee reduction. The village would also have the right to modify the amount of the fee reductions without prior notice — and without refunding advertizing expenses to developers.

Noak said the housing crash hasn't impacted Romeoville as severely as it has some communities.

"Romeoville was fortunate because when the housing bubble burst, we had already slowed down to a manageable level," he noted, saying village officials worked to keep residential growth at a manageable pace.

The village hopes that pace will keep Romeoville growing steadily in the years to come.

"There's still room for the vilalge to grow over the next 20 to 30 years," Noak said.

 Also on the agenda for Wednesday’s village board meeting:

• An ordinance establishing a new ambulance fee schedule. The proposal would raise most fees by $150 to $200, and adds an auto extrication fee of $700 for residents and $800 for non-residents. The current fees were established in 2002.
• A resolution endorsing the Lower DuPage River Watershed Plan, under which the village would work with the Lower DuPage River Watershed Coalition to address water-quality issues, and minimize erosion and flooding.
• A $347,000 contract with Neuman Company to rehab and paint the Marquette Drive standpipe.