Board of Commissioners [in person or remote]

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

Utilities

Thursday, July 14, 2022
10:30 a.m. — 12:30 p.m. CDT

You have the option to document this meeting in person or remotely, via live stream.

If you attend the meeting in person, an additional hour will be added to your pay for this assignment. Take a photo to let us know you were there. You will be required to go through a metal detector and show government-issued photo ID. More details on attending public meetings of the MWRDGC Board of Commissioners can be found here, starting on pp. 13.

If you choose to document this meeting remotely, visit/refresh https://mwrd.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx at the scheduled meeting time. A link labeled “In Progress” will appear under the Video column for the corresponding meeting (though it may not be until at or a little after the scheduled start time).

Check the source website for additional information

Reporting

Edited and summarized by the Chicago - IL Documenters Team

Note-taking by Caitlin Tylka

Award for reducing urban flood risk, Public info about PFAs ,and Olympic Gold Medalist Abbey Murphy

View notes

Live reporting by Maya Holt

Award for reducing urban flood risk, Public info about PFAs ,and Olympic Gold Medalist Abbey Murphy

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas

Live-tweeting the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Board of Commissioners meeting for @CHIdocumenters this morning. Agenda here: chicago.documenters.org/documents/agen…

11:09 AM Jul 14, 2022 CDT

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 2/8

@CHIdocumenters A financial report was given on the commission's retirement fund by Jim Mohler. The fund finished 2021 at a little over $1.7B. Mohler said the portfolio has had an average of 14.2% return over the last three years.

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 3/8

The Commission has officially recognized Olympic gold medal winning hockey player, Abbey Murphy. Murphy will be visiting the commissioners later today.

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 4/8

Regarding line item #35, Commissioner Davis raised the concern that construction bids are being rejected by the board that might end up saving taxpayers. “During this time of market volatility, we’re required to take more creative approaches than we were in the past.”

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 5/8

President Kari K. Steele announced that the Commission has received an award for their efforts to reduce urban flood risk in Chicago in the face of climate change.

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 6/8

The Commission will be preparing a letter of invitation to Thai dignitaries to speak in mid-October about youth engagement and education regarding water.

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 7/8

Commissioner Perry wants to make information about PFAS more publicly available. The contaminant is unregulated, and disproportionately affects communities of color. The commissioners are referencing an article from earlier this week: chicagotribune.com/news/environme…

pixel o.d. @mayaculpas 8/8

A member of the public spoke about the shooting of Jayland Walker in Akron, Ohio, and urged other people to show up to future board meetings to keep the government accountable.

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Agency Information

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

mwrd.org

(312) 751-6633

public.affairs@mwrd.org

@MWRDGC

See Documenters reporting

Created in 1889 as the Sanitary District of Chicago, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) today is a special-purpose district responsible for treating wastewater and providing stormwater management for residents and businesses in its service area, which encompasses 882.1 square miles and includes Chicago and 128 suburban communities throughout Cook County.

The MWRD serves approximately 10.35 million people each day, including 5.25 million residents of Chicago and 128 suburban communities. To learn more about the agency’s management structure and departments, click here.