Politics & Government
Water War Update: Niles Ordered to Hand Over Documents to Glenview
Cook County Judge Rita Novak ruled favorably on Glenview's motion seeking to compel Niles to turn over requested documents to Glenview.
Updated as of 1 p.m. on Feb. 8
The Village of Niles was ordered to hand over requested documents to Glenview by a Cook County judge on Monday. Judge Rita Novak's decision is the latest in the $3-million water bill dispute.
Glenview had asked for the papers, which included internal documents, in the hopes of determining "how Niles arrived at the water rates," according to a statement from the village's communications director Lynne Stiefel.
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By obtaining this paperwork, Glenview hopes to identify how the village had been charged for the services received, said the municipalities' attorney Eric Patt.
"We have the final numbers from what Glenview has been, what we’re asking for is the documentation that led them to come up with those figures. . .we want to know what went into building the house so to speak," Patt told Patch.
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Earlier:
When asked if this was a significant win for Glenview in the water war, Niles Village Attorney Joe Annunzio said no.
"Glenview already has most of the documents. They got them through FOIA before we even filed a lawsuit," Annunzio told Patch, highlighting the move as redundant.
But, according to Patt, these breakdowns will more accurately indicate wether Glenview wasn't being charged the same rate as what Niles' residents, and being billed for sewer rates. Both of which would be violations, Patt added.
Glenview had asked Cook County Judge Rita Novak in August to force Niles to turn over all the documents it wants to conduct an audit to determine whether Niles has been overcharging a Glenview-owned water utility since 1997, and, if so, to order Niles to refund the amount of the overcharge.
Glenview, which owns North Maine Utilities, stopped payment on the bills in May, saying it has put the money in an interest bearing escrow account until it can figure out whether Niles has been overcharging it for water.
Niles has until Feb. 27 to turn over the information.
"I would hope that we’d get a firm answer of what we’re really looking at within a month of that," Patt said.
For more on the dispute and how it all started, check out Patch's Want to stay up-to-date on the latest local news? Like us on Facebook!
