Stormwater Utility Fee Information

Changes to the City's Stormwater Fee

The stormwater fee that you see as part of your utility bill supports the maintenance and operation of the City’s storm sewer system, which takes rainwater away from properties. Previously, this fee was based on how much City water a property used plus a base fee. In May 2024, the City Council approved a change to how the City calculates a property's stormwater utility fee, basing it on the amount of impervious area - any area on a property that prevents stormwater from draining into soil (such as a building or a driveway) - which is a more accurate measure of how much demand a property places on the City’s stormwater infrastructure. Starting Aug. 15, 2024 all stormwater utility fees are now based on a property’s amount of impervious area.

What is considered impervious area?
Impervious area is any area within a property that prevents stormwater from draining into soil. Examples of impervious area include:

  • Buildings
  • Houses and other roofed structures
  • Driveways
  • Walkways
  • Paved surfaces
  • Patios
  • Swimming pools
  • Parking lots
  • Gravel, brick, and stone surfaces

How is impervious area calculated for each property?
DuPage County provided the City with aerial photography that shows every property in the City limits. Using these digital maps, the City determined how much impervious area each property contains and calculated that property’s fee.

Which properties are required to pay a stormwater utility fee?
All properties that have 250 square feet or more of impervious surface area and are not owned by the City of Wheaton are required to pay a stormwater utility fee. The only properties that are exempt are City-owned properties, public rights-of-way (e.g., roads, sidewalks, utilities), and properties with less than 250 square feet of impervious area.

How are fees calculated for each property?
The billing rate for the fee is called an Equivalent Runoff Unit (ERU). The ERU reflects the median amount of impervious area for a single-family residential property in the City of Wheaton, which is 3,300 square feet.

  • Single-Family Properties with less than 7,001 square feet of impervious area are assigned an ERU based on a tier system (reference table below).
  • For all other properties, including single-family properties with greater than 7,001 square feet of impervious area, their fee is the exact ERU for the property, calculated as the amount of impervious area on the property divided by 3,300 square feet, then rounded to the nearest tenth.
Property TypeTiersImpervious Area RangeNumber of ERUs per Parcel
Single-Family
Residential		Tier 1250 - 2,500 square feet0.75 ERU
Tier 22,501 - 4,000 square feet1.0 ERU
Tier 34,001 - 7,000 square feet1.5 ERU
Tier 47,001 square feet or moreSquare Feet of Impervious Area / 3,300
All Other
Properties

Square Feet of Impervious Area / 3,300

ERU Rate

Each year, the City Council will set the fee per ERU through the City’s annual budget based upon the stormwater utility’s needed funding. As of Aug. 1, 2024 the fee per ERU is $5.30.

Example Fees

Below are examples of different properties with different amounts of impervious area to show how much they would be charged under the stormwater utility fee in 2024.

Example 1: Average Single-Family Residential

Example 1: Single-Family Residential Home Impervious Area Diagram

This property has 3,300 square feet of impervious area and falls under Tier 2 of the Single-Family Residential Fee structure and is assigned 1 ERU.

Monthly Stormwater Utility Fee = 1 ERU x $5.30 = $5.30 per month


Example 2: Grocery Store

Example 2: Grocery Store Impervious Area Diagram

This property has 74,029 square feet of impervious area. Since this is not a single-family residential property, the property’s ERU is calculated using the following formula:

ERU Calculation = 74,029 sq ft / 3,300 sq ft = 22.4 ERU
Monthly Stormwater Utility Fee = 22.4 ERU x $5.30 = $118.72 per month


Frequently Asked Questions

How will my utility bill change?
The revised stormwater utility fee is on your monthly utility bill starting with your August bill. The line items “stormwater monthly service fee” and “storm sewer usage” you see on your current bill will be consolidated into one line item: “stormwater utility fee.”

For property owners who currently do not have an existing utility bill with the City of Wheaton, the City mailed you a utility bill with the monthly stormwater utility fee (this was mailed starting Aug. 15, 2024).

How am I charged if I live in an apartment, condominium/townhome unit or homeowners' association?
For multi-unit apartment developments, the stormwater utility fee for the entire property will be incorporated into their utility accounts. The property management company may choose to allocate this fee to individual tenants.

Residents of condominiums and townhomes with existing utility billing accounts will see their portion of stormwater utility fee included on their Aug. 15 bills. In developments where utilities are paid by homeowners’ associations, the stormwater utility fee will be included in the bills paid by the homeowners’ association. The homeowners’ association may choose to allocate this fee to the individual tenants or homeowners.

The impervious areas that exist on common areas of townhome/condominium developments will be billed to the property management company or homeowners’ association.

Request for Adjustment Application

Property owners may file a form to request an adjustment of their monthly stormwater utility fee. This form establishes a process for property owners to:

  1. Contest the amount on their bill
  2. Contest or change the recipient of their bill
  3. Contest the City’s calculation of impervious area for their property

Stormwater Utility Fee Request for Adjustment Form (PDF)

Please allow the City 45 days to respond to an application.

Runoff Credit

The City of Wheaton offers a “runoff credit” for up to a 50% reduction in stormwater utility fees for property or properties if the property owner can show that none of the property’s runoff discharges to the City’s stormwater system during a 100-year storm event.

Stormwater Utility Fee Runoff Credit Application (PDF)

Please allow the City 60 days to respond to an application.

Forms

Public Meetings, Presentations, and Information

If you would like additional information on the City’s analysis and proposed fee structure you can review several of the previous city council planning sessions that covered this topic:

Contact:
If you have questions, comments, or concerns about the stormwater utility fee, please email stormwaterhelp@wheaton.il.us.