The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has decided to refer the cases of four contractors accused of constructing potentially hazardous water and sewer lines in Lemont to the consumer fraud division of the Illinois attorney general`s office.
The contractors were given a chance to correct the alleged problems but did not respond to the agency`s directives, according to agency Deputy Counsel Stephen Ewart.
However, contractors responsible for about half of the violations found in about 90 homes have indicated a willingness to make necessary plumbing repairs, Ewart said.
Several other homes were either built by two contractors already charged in a civil complaint filed by state officials or were built by contractors still under investigation.
Ewart identified the four contractors referred to the attorney general as Glen Veagh Builders Inc. of Burr Ridge, Triple Construction of Lemont, Scanlon Builders of Palos Heights and Skoglund & Sons Inc. of Lemont.
Assistant Atty. Gen. Lynn Worley, who is pursuing civil cases against builders Joe Janas and Norman Roy, said an amended complaint that could include Ewart`s recommendations will be filed later this month.
The complaints against Janas and Roy had been lodged by homeowners, but the problems became villagewide last summer when the environmental protection agency found that about 90 homes in the village were in danger of water contamination because their water and sewer lines were constructed less than 10 feet apart, in violation of state regulations.
At first, the residents were told they were responsible for the estimated $3,000 to $5,000 in repairs for each house.
Last month, though, the EPA ordered the 30 contractors to repair the lines at no charge to the homeowners. In a letter, Ewart said those who did not comply would have their cases referred to the attorney general.
Since then, several contractors have expressed interest in repairing the damage although most of the work has not been done.
Bob Skoglund of Skoglund & Sons said his firm`s work that has been called into question was completed when his son was running the business. Since then, he said, he has repurchased the company from his son.
Steven Skoglund, the son, said his plumbing contractor, Holladay Plumbing Inc. of Joliet, told him it would make necessary repairs.
Efforts to reach the other three contractors were unsuccessful.
![Claudia Perez’s children could count on one hand the number of times they had seen their father cry. The day their mother left was one of them. Perez had worked her whole life for a dream that did not come true: Save enough money to take her family back to Mexico and live together in the town where they were all born. Instead, on a cold February day, she stepped onto a bus in Brighton Park and said goodbye, making the difficult choice between her loved ones in Mexico and her family in Chicago. “Don’t leave my love. No te […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ctc-VHR5442_183545767.jpg?w=525 "Claudia Perez’s children could count on one hand the number of times they had seen their father cry. The day their mother left was one of them. Perez had worked her whole life for a dream that did not come true: Save enough money to take her family back to Mexico and live together in the town where they were all born. Instead, on a cold February day, she stepped onto a bus in Brighton Park and said goodbye, making the difficult choice between her loved ones in Mexico and her family in Chicago. “Don’t leave my love. No te […]")