Fox River Water Reclamation District

What Fox River Water Reclamation District does

Fox River Water Reclamation District is a special-purpose municipal government entity organized in 1922 under the Illinois Sanitary District Act of 1917, operating as the Sixth Sanitary District of Illinois. It provides sanitary sewer collection and wastewater treatment services to approximately 200,000 residents across six Fox River valley communities — Elgin, South Elgin, West Dundee, Sleepy Hollow, Streamwood, and Hoffman Estates — together with portions of unincorporated Kane and Cook Counties. Operations are run through three wastewater treatment plants with a combined daily capacity of 37.5 million gallons, employing roughly 50 full-time staff under Executive Director Eric J. Johnson, Assistant Executive Director Jeremy Henning, and engineering led by Timothy Gualandri, P.E. Treatment achieves a 95-98% impurity removal rate ahead of discharge under NPDES permits.

The district's technical stack combines conventional activated-sludge treatment with biological phosphorus removal, MagPrex struvite recovery, on-site solar generation (West Plant Solar Project, operational target April 2026, with $750K in secured incentives and a stated 5-year payback), and an in-house laboratory equipped with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) acquired in 2024, which processes samples from approximately 20 million gallons per day of district flow. Process control is handled through SCADA systems, and the district has publicly signalled exploration of digital twin technology, smart asset management platforms, and water reuse initiatives as forward-looking capability investments. Operational practices include a 'Learning Thursdays' staff development program initiated in 2024. Financial management was recognized with the GFOA Distinguished Budget Presentation Award in 2025.

Revenue derives from a regulated municipal utility model: usage-based sewer service charges are billed to ratepayers through the six member municipalities rather than directly by the district, supplemented by connection and permit fees for new development, industrial pretreatment program fees, and a credit meter program for high-volume industrial users. The district does not publicly disclose operating revenue or full budget figures. No equity funding rounds, acquisitions, or external capital raises are present; governance is restructured around the executive office after the 2023 dissolution of the Board of Local Improvements. The entity is not a venture-backed or M&A-eligible business in the conventional sense — it is a statutory service provider.

Name

Fox River Water Reclamation District

Legal name

Fox River Water Reclamation District

Website

https://frwrd.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1922

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Special-purpose Illinois sanitary district providing wastewater collection and treatment to approximately 200,000 residents across six Fox River valley communities via three treatment plants with 37.5 million gallons per day of combined capacity.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

South Elgin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Wastewater Treatment Service Fees: Fees for wastewater treatment billed on combined water and sewer bills from municipalities. For Elgin customers, services appear as 'sewer treatment'; for South Elgin customers, they appear as 'sewer'. Billing is based on metered water usage.
2. Connection/Service Fees: Permit fees charged to new developments and users based on type and location of facility, contributing to capital costs for expanding water reclamation facilities. Areas annexed prior to 1990 are charged on a cost per fixture basis.
3. Industrial Pretreatment Program Fees: Fees from industrial users for permits, inspections, and discharge sampling as part of the Industrial Pretreatment Program.
4. Credit Meter Program: Program allowing industrial/commercial customers credit toward sewer usage for water not going to sanitary sewer. New industrial/commercial customers can register.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

FRWRD operates three water reclamation facilities (Albin D. Pagorski WRF, North Plant, and West Plant) with a combined capacity of 37.5 million gallons per day, providing wastewater treatment through physical, biological, and chemical processes to approximately 200,000 customers across six communities. Services include laboratory analysis for process control and regulatory compliance, an Industrial Pretreatment Program for managing industrial discharges, and connection permits for new construction in the service area.

Product overview

Fox River Water Reclamation District operates as a unified wastewater treatment service with three integrated water reclamation facilities (Albin D. Pagorski WRF, North Plant, and West Plant) with combined capacity of 37.5 million gallons per day. The District's service portfolio includes core wastewater treatment through physical, biological, and chemical processes, supported by Laboratory Services for process control and regulatory compliance, an Industrial Pretreatment Program for managing industrial discharges, Connection Permits for new construction, and Billing/Meter Reading Services for customer accounts. All facilities discharge to the Fox River with 95-98% impurity removal.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wastewater Treatment Services FRWRD operates three water reclamation facilities (Albin D. Pagorski WRF, North Plant, West Plant) with a total capacity of 37.5 million gallons per day, providing wastewater treatment through physical, biological, and chemical processes to approximately 200,000 customers across six communities. The district achieves 95-98% impurity removal before discharging treated water to the Fox River.
• Laboratory Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Processes 20 million gallons of wastewater per day
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fox River Study GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive participant in the Fox River Study Group contributing technical services, analytical data, and expertise. Supports the group's endeavors to study and improve Fox River water quality.
• Illinois Association of Wastewater AgenciescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember organization providing advocacy and resources for wastewater agencies in Illinois.
• National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational association representing publicly owned wastewater treatment facilities.
• Illinois Environmental Protection AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance. FRWRD submits comprehensive reports and holds NPDES permits under IEPA oversight.
• United States Environmental Protection AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal regulatory agency. FRWRD maintains compliance with three NPDES permits and submits reports to USEPA.
• Water Environment FederationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional organization providing resources and best practices for water quality management.
• Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIntergovernmental agreement for wastewater treatment of the Poplar Creek Drainage Basin, including Streamwood, portions of Hoffman Estates, and Bartlett.
• Village of West DundeecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorContract agreement for wastewater treatment services to portions of West Dundee.
• Waste Management and Research CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity-affiliated research center providing waste management research and resources.
• Fox Metro Water Reclamation DistrictminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner district that visited FRWRD for collaborative learning session led by FRWRD's Lab Manager Sam Youssef, showcasing state-of-the-art equipment and sharing insights on various issues.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wheaton Sanitary District: DuPage County sanitary district providing wastewater collection and treatment to roughly the same scale of population as FRWRD. Comparable Illinois municipal wastewater operator with similar regulatory and operational profile.
• Fox Metro Water Reclamation District: Neighboring Illinois sanitary district serving Aurora, Oswego, and surrounding communities. Already identified in FRWRD's data as a peer district that conducted a collaborative learning visit, making it the most directly comparable sanitary district in the region.
• Downers Grove Sanitary District: Suburban Chicago sanitary district providing wastewater collection and treatment under Illinois sanitary district law. Closely comparable in customer type, regulatory regime, and service scope.
• North Shore Water Reclamation District: Illinois sanitary district serving Lake County suburbs with municipal wastewater treatment and similar NPDES, IEPA, and USEPA compliance profile. Comparable scale and governance structure to FRWRD.
• Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC): Large Illinois sanitary district that already has an intergovernmental agreement with FRWRD covering the Poplar Creek Drainage Basin (Streamwood, portions of Hoffman Estates and Bartlett). Operates wastewater treatment at municipal scale in the same regulatory environment.
• Glenbard Wastewater Authority: Joint-action wastewater authority serving Glen Ellyn, Lombard, and other DuPage County communities. Comparable Illinois municipal wastewater operator with similar size, customer mix, and regulatory exposure.

Regional players

• Upper Blackstone Water Pollution Abatement District: Massachusetts regional wastewater district with similar municipal-scale treatment operations and NPDES-equivalent state permits. Useful as a regional benchmark for sanitary-district operating models and rate structures.
• DuPage County Department of Environmental Concerns: County-level water and environmental services in the same sub-Chicago region as FRWRD. Indirect overlap through shared regional water-quality concerns and adjacent service territory.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http://www.frwrd.com
• Facebookfacebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://www.frwrd.com

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fox River Water Reclamation District