Naperville officials said Monday the cost to move a proposed Commonwealth Edison substation would be much less than the utility company first indicated, an important consideration because city officials want the current site for a Metra station.
The city wants to build a Metra station on 46 acres ComEd owns east of the EJ&E Railroad lines and south of the proposed extension of 95th Street.
ComEd, which announced that it wants to build a major substation on the property, has agreed to look into a land swap with the city.
Last month, ComEd officials estimated the cost to move the substation would be about $23 million. The estimate was based on the need to remove topsoil and bring in fill, necessary so the land could bear the weight of the towers and other equipment, utility officials said.
But on Monday, the city made public a study it commissioned on the costs of moving the substation, and that study said the cost would be at most $5 million.
In fact, one possible site for the substation, a farm on the west side of Illinois Highway 59, would save ComEd $2.2 million over the estimated cost of its current proposed site.
Allan Poole, Naperville’s director of public utilities, said engineers hired by the city have determined that there is much less site work needed for the substation.
City Manager Peter Burchard said he believed ComEd came up with such a high figure initially in an effort to thwart the city’s plans for a land swap. But he said the city will continue to press for some sort of resolution because of the need for a train station in the growing southern part of the city.
“Our goal is to make sure that all steps are taken that will result in the best place for the train station,” he said.
ComEd spokeswoman Meg Amato said the utility is reviewing the city’s report and is optimistic that an alternative site can be found.
“There appear to be viable preliminary sites,” she said. “We are looking forward to the next meeting with the City of Naperville.”
The city wants to bring in officials from neighboring Aurora for its talks with ComEd because two of the alternative sites proposed fall into Aurora’s planning district.
Naperville spent $35,000 on the report, done by Burns & McDonnell of Oak Brook.
Burchard said a transportation hub on the city’s south side is vital to the region.
According to a land-use plan that City Council members are reviewing, such a transportation hub would allow developers to build multiuse developments near the train station, encouraging more businesses and some multifamily housing.
Such a station also is expected to reduce the number of cars traveling through the city to get to other Metra stations.
