The 54-inch water main going in under Book Road is meant for three other towns. The DuPage Water Commission is building it to carry Lake Michigan water to Montgomery, Oswego and Yorkville, according to NCTV17. The project is called WaterLink. Its 30-mile route starts in Naperville, and six of those miles run through the city.
That one fact explains most of what south Naperville drivers have dealt with since construction started. The pipe has to begin where the commission's existing network already ends, and that point is in Naperville. From there it has to work its way south and west toward towns whose wells are running low. Book Road gets dug up first because it sits at the start of the route, and it will stay under construction into 2027.
The pipe starts here because the network does
WaterLink is split into seven pipeline packages, and Book Road is the first. In the project's own words, it "connects to the DuPage Water Commission's distribution network in Naperville and continues south to Frontier Park." At Frontier, the main line turns west and follows a ComEd corridor through Naperville for most of the rest of its path through the city.
The City of Naperville's project page gave December 2025 as the planned start of phase one. That phase covers full closures on Book Road from just north of 75th Street to 103rd Street, with only one section closed at a time. That's why the closure keeps moving instead of ending. Crews finish one stretch, reopen it, and move the barricades south. The city expects Book Road work to continue into spring 2027.
The same route also explains the second work zone, west of Route 59. As of Oct. 9, crews had finished installing the main under 95th Street and 248th Avenue and were testing it before restoring those roads. Pipe was then going into the ComEd right-of-way from 248th Avenue toward Tall Grass Drive. That update also expected Tall Grass Drive to close from Mistflower Lane to just south of Looking Post Avenue in mid to late October.
What the towns downstream are running out of
The reason for the project is about 30 miles southwest, deep underground. In the Village of Oswego's announcement of the water contract, it says Oswego, Montgomery and Yorkville currently draw from the Ironton-Galesville aquifer, which won't be able to supply their growing population. The village's water source page cites Illinois State Water Survey modeling that shows groundwater could drop below the level of existing wells, because demand is high and the aquifer refills slowly.
Oswego's new water source page gives a firmer deadline. The three towns were seeing declining well production, and some wells could stop working as soon as 2033. The project materials say those three towns are paying for the new supply.
When Oswego announced the project in October 2024, it gave these figures:
- Project cost: $250 million
- Construction window: starting in 2025, finishing in 2028
- First Lake Michigan water in Oswego: targeted for spring or summer 2028
Those dates were planning targets set two years ago, not a recently confirmed schedule. They still show the order of events. The towns at the far end can't switch to lake water until the pipe reaches them, and every mile depends on the stretch before it. Book Road comes first.
Where the closures stand as of WaterLink's Oct. 9 update
WaterLink posts construction updates by email, and the Oct. 9 update is the most detailed recent one. Treat every line below as that week's snapshot. The project describes its timelines as "weather permitting and subject to change."
| Segment | Condition as of Oct. 9 | Expected timing |
|---|---|---|
| Book Rd, 75th to 83rd St | Full closure ending | Expected to reopen by end of day Sat., Oct. 10 |
| Book Rd, 83rd to 87th St | Closed to all traffic | Into the fall |
| Book Rd, 87th to 95th St | Local southbound only; through traffic detours via 87th St or 95th St | Through end of year |
| Book Rd, 95th St to Conan Doyle Rd | Southbound only from Mon., Oct. 12; northbound detours via Plainfield-Naperville Rd or Route 59 | Through November |
| 95th St at Book Rd | Westbound down to one lane | Pavement repairs ongoing |
| 95th St near 248th Ave | Two-way traffic shifted onto westbound lanes; eastbound lanes closed | Restoration late Nov. or early Dec. |
| 248th Ave, 95th St to Trumpet | Closed to all traffic | Reopening early November |
| 248th Ave, Trumpet to south of Lapp Ln | Local two-way traffic on southbound lanes | South of Trumpet reopening mid-October |
The single lane on 95th Street at Book Road has its own cause. A sinkhole opened near the work site on Sept. 27, as NCTV17 reported. It has been filled, and crews are now repairing the pavement on top.
Before the work moved south of 95th Street, the project team, the Water Commission and the City of Naperville spent a week working out how to handle that stretch. The Oct. 9 update explains the result:
"The project team, DWC and the City of Naperville have coordinated extensively over the last week on this section of work and collectively agreed that maintaining southbound traffic is the safest option."
The same update covers sidewalks. Most sidewalks on Book Road between 87th and 95th remain open. The east-side sidewalk between Leverenz Road and Davidson Road is closed through October while crews install culverts and move a storm sewer. The project team says it's working with the school district to limit the effect on students walking to and from school.
Why the detours pile up in November
The detours from one project run straight into the next one. Northbound drivers on Book Road between 95th Street and Conan Doyle Road are sent to Plainfield-Naperville Road or Route 59. Route 59 is in the last phase of a separate $4.6 million IDOT resurfacing project between McCoy Drive and Artesian Road, which began July 13. NCTV17 reported that asphalt paving starts in October and will happen mostly overnight. Daytime and occasional overnight lane closures will continue until the project finishes sometime in November. IDOT hasn't set an exact completion date.
November is also when WaterLink reaches parkland. The Naperville Park District announced on Oct. 16 that parts of the multi-purpose fields and trail at Frontier Sports Complex will close to the public, with construction set to start Nov. 1. The district says it will contact affected residents, program participants and affiliate groups directly. This matches the route. Frontier is where the Book Road package ends and the main line turns west.
The detours also send more traffic past some new businesses. NCTV17's Oct. 13 business roundup lists Butter and Batch Bakery, which opened Aug. 4 at 2863 95th St., Suite 143. It also lists Vasco's Peri Peri, which began a soft opening the week before that report at 3124 S. Route 59, Suite 146.
How to read the next update
WaterLink's updates follow a pattern. One stretch reopens, the next one closes, and the Oct. 9 update says plainly that "additional closures heading south along Book Road will follow." The work still has to reach 103rd Street. Here's where to check before you drive:
- WaterLink's site. waterlinkpipeline.com posts each update and the email sign-up. The detour maps come with those emails.
- The project hotline. Call (630) 576-9997 or email [email protected] with questions about a specific segment.
- The city's project page. The City of Naperville has the full route map, which shows where the pipe runs after Book Road.
- The Park District. Updates on the Frontier Sports Complex closure will come from napervilleparks.org.
The dates to watch through the end of the year:
- Through October: east-side Book Road sidewalk between Leverenz and Davidson closed
- Nov. 1: Frontier fields and trail closures begin
- Early November: 248th Avenue between 95th Street and Trumpet expected to reopen
- Through November: southbound-only Book Road from 95th Street to Conan Doyle Road
- Late November or early December: road restoration on 95th Street and 248th Avenue
- Through year-end: local southbound-only Book Road from 87th to 95th Street
For more on how this side of the city connects to the rest of Naperville, see our Naperville neighborhood guide.
If you live along Book Road or 95th Street and want to know how this stretch of construction affects your home's value, Loncar Realty can give you a current valuation based on recent south Naperville sales. Request your instant home valuation, and we'll follow up with the local details a standard estimate leaves out.
