Grant Award Helps Continue the City’s Efforts Towards Building an Environmentally Supportive Community
Congratulations to the City of Darien Public Works Department on their grant award which will support the purchase of one all-electric truck to replace a vehicle that was recently retired. The grant also includes a dedicated charging station installed at public works. The grant provides for $298,395, which is 75% of the estimated cost. The vehicle will be used for both street and water divisions and will provide staff with an opportunity to evaluate the functionality and performance of an electric truck and confirm the value experienced in other organizations. The City of Darien has been designated an EV Ready Community. The EV Readiness program helped local governments prepare to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles and charging infrastructure.
You can learn more about EV Ready Communities here. This is the second recent environmental-related grant awarded to the city’s Public Works Department. In January of this year, the city was awarded a $100,000 subgrant by The Morton Arboretum’s Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI) to improve the community tree canopy. Through this subgrant, the City of Darien will plant approximately 200 new trees in eligible areas of the community by the end of Fall 2026.
The City of Darien has always been active in promoting and supporting Environmental causes throughout the city.
Years ago, the environmental focus was on recycling efforts throughout the city. Currently, many environmental efforts require expertise and training in a variety of topics related to the environment.
City staff has taken on the task of meeting environmental concerns and accomplishing numerous goals. Mayor Marchese, City Council and staff have maintained their involvement in environmental issues, and over the last 2 – 3 years, we have been active in the following areas:
· Through our membership in the Metropolitan Mayor’s Caucus, we have attended and participated in the MMC’s Environmental sub-committee;
· Through our membership in the MMC, we were part of the first EV Readiness Cohort, which earned us Bronze level status;
· We have applied for grants, through the MMC for the development of EV Super charging stations in Darien, and we were awarded 1.3 million dollars to install charging stations at City Hall and at Public Works. The Brookhaven management was part of this program. While Brookhaven is prepared to open their charging stations, the federal government cut/pulled the 1.3 million which effectively negated our installation of the charging stations;
· As an environmentally conscious community, the city sought to enhance the appearance of our streetscapes, by landscaping our medians, and installing irrigation systems;
· We explored the use of an environmentally safe/biodegradable liquid use we adopted prior to a snow/ice event;
· We explored the need to modify our ordinances detailing the requirements that provide residents with information on the installation of solar panels; this work resulted in our being designated a “Sol Smart” community;
· We have qualified as a “Greenest Region” awarded city;
· Through a grant we obtained from the Morton Arboretum, we are the recipients of 100 donated trees, that per the grant, will be planted in parkways where there is poor canopy cover;
· Through a grant program with the State of Illinois, we will have the opportunity to purchase, at more than half the cost of new, a nine-ton dump truck that is EV equipped. As part of this program, we will also see the installation of a level three super charger installed at our Public Works facility;
· We are exploring the possibility of being part of the BESS Program (Battery Energy Storage System). BESS units are large rechargeable batteries and associated hardware that store electricity for later use. This system would be installed on a separate property, and the city would receive revenue from the project;
· We have been and continue to be part of the Monarch Butterfly Program, and we continue to urge the development of milkweed plantings for Monarch Butterflies and pollinators;
· We scheduled electronics recycling programs that included flat screen televisions, computers and assorted electronic equipment;
· Our adoption of LRS as our waste hauler included the use of a tote program that allowed for additional recycling material including composting. In addition, we worked with LRS to conduct an electronic recycling program.
In addition to these items, we have been supportive of the Darien Garden Club in its efforts to promote their programs, and have supported the Darien Rotary’s efforts to facilitate their annual recycling program.
The City of Darien will continue to prioritize our efforts toward building an environmentally supportive community.