Lots of anti-water-authority testimony heard

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SYCAMORE - Only one of 24 people who spoke at a public hearing Thursday was in favor of a proposed regional water authority. The statements from Paul Rasmussen, president of the DeKalb County Farm Bureau, were also the only testimony not objected to by John Countryman, the attorney representing the Woodstock-based Alliance for Land, Agriculture and Water, or A-LAW, the group petitioning for the creation of the authority. Countryman made a motion to strike each of the other speakers' testimonies from the record for reasons ranging from where the person lived to the content of their objection. The proposed authority would cover most of DeKalb, Boone and McHenry counties, and would have the power to regulate water consumption and manage the water supply, including condemning land for wells or forbidding well construction. A-LAW has petitioned for a referendum on creation of the authority to appear on the April 17 ballot. Thursday's hearing before a packed courtroom was to negotiate the boundaries of the proposal. Rasmussen, on behalf of the farm bureau, said the water authority is a necessary tool. &#8220The farm bureau supports the creation of the Kishwaukee Valley Water Authority as a means to protect groundwater for future generations,” Rasmussen said. Other testimony was not so glowing. Most speakers requested that DeKalb County be removed from the three-county area covered by the authority, and many DeKalb and Sycamore residents said that if the county remained included, the cities of DeKalb and Sycamore should be included as well, so voters living in those cities could have a say in the referendum. The boundaries of the authority exempt some of the largest municipal areas within the three counties, including DeKalb, Sycamore, Belvidere and Crystal Lake. The authority would, however, control land outside those cities' corporate boundaries, including land that may eventually be annexed. Attorney Mike Coughlin, representing the DeKalb County Building and Development Association, called the proposal &#8220gerrymandering.” &#8220It looks like a piece of Swiss cheese,” he said of the proposed map. &#8220The majority of voters who are affected by it can't vote on it.” Coughlin and DeKalb County State's Attorney Ron Matekaitis also said that of the 1,600 petition signatures obtained to get the authority on the ballot, only 250 came from DeKalb County. &#8220Only 20 percent of the registered voters in these three counties will be allowed to vote on this proposal,” Matekaitis said. &#8220That means 10 percent plus one would be able to pass this proposal, which affects 100 percent of the population. It could be passed by a majority that doesn't even reside in the county.” Steve Kapitan, 3rd Ward alderman on the DeKalb City Council, said the basic idea of a body to regulate water use made sense, but it did not make sense to exclude the most heavily populated areas using the same water supply. Paul Miller, a resident of unincorporated DeKalb County and the county planning director, suggested the authority be created in Boone and McHenry counties, where studies have shown water regulation may be needed, and DeKalb County should be given the ability to opt in or create its own authority later. Countryman told Klein he was opposed to the number of city and county officials and employees who showed up to speak at the hearing, saying residents' tax dollars were not being paid to officials so they could come give political opinions. &#8220Unless they all want to show me that they took a vacation day today, I would move their testimony be stricken,” he said. DeKalb City Manager Mark Biernacki and Sycamore City Manager Bill Nicklas asked that their cities be included in the authority's proposal, so voters within those cities can vote on it in the spring election. County Administrator Ray Bockman, a DeKalb resident, poked fun at the plan's proposed boundaries and asked if &#8220just a finger could be extended down so it includes my house so we can vote on it.” Meanwhile, Genoa 4th Ward Alderman Jay Hansen asked that his city be excluded from the plan, saying that including Genoa while similar-sized cities in McHenry County were excluded puts the city at an unfair development disadvantage. More than two and a half hours after the hearing began, Klein addressed the packed courtroom. &#8220Pretty interesting situation, huh?” he said. &#8220The municipalities are saying, ‘We don't want a water authority telling us what to do and how to develop,' and the rural areas are saying, ‘We don't want the municipalities hogging all the water.' I find this very interesting. It's a refreshing change from what I normally get to do (criminal court).” Klein gave the attorneys representing people opposed to the authority until the close of business Tuesday to file further motions and objections. Dana Herra can be reached at dherra@daily-chronicle.com.