Romeoville Window Well Covers & Basement Windows
In 1957, more than 600 acres of wetland along Route 53 became the Hampton Park subdivision, and Romeoville went from 147 residents in 1950 to 3,574 in 1960. Houses built on filled wetland have their own relationship with groundwater, and the oldest window wells in the village are on those streets.
The village grew again after the first I-55 interchange opened in 1990. The median Romeoville home was built in 1999, with 58% of the stock built between 1990 and 2009 and about one home in five predating 1970. Those older wells are the ones we most often replace outright rather than cover.
Filled wetland between two waterways
Romeoville sits just west of the Des Plaines River with the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal running through it. In the April 2013 storms that set records across the region, the village recorded 4.12 inches of rain over two days.
The village runs its stormwater program under an MS4 permit and belongs to both the Lower DuPage River and Lower Des Plaines River watershed groups. It amended its stormwater ordinance in 2019 to adopt updated flood maps, and its plan commits to reviewing that ordinance annually against FEMA regulations.
Two of Romeoville's own building amendments bear directly on basement water. The village requires gutters, downspouts and splash blocks carrying all roof drainage away from the house, and it specifies minimum four-inch floor slabs with wire mesh. Roof water and window wells are the same problem approached from two directions — getting the roof discharge away from the foundation and keeping the wells covered are both about not letting water sit against the wall.
Permits and egress in Romeoville
Romeoville has adopted the 2021 International Residential Code by ordinance, and — we checked — its local amendments make no changes to the emergency escape and rescue requirements. That means the standard numbers apply here without a local twist.
Windows and siding are listed as work requiring a permit. Egress windows and basement finishing are not itemized separately, so confirm your scope with the Building Division at 815-886-7200. Worth knowing before you plan a basement: the village sets three tiers of remodeling based on how much drywall comes off and what the job costs, and the higher tiers trigger insulation, electrical and mechanical upgrades.
For the well itself: at least 9 square feet with 36 inches of projection and width, a permanent ladder or steps past 44 inches of depth, and a cover that releases from inside with no key, tool or special knowledge.
All our covers:
Romeoville Window Well Covers | Romeoville Window Wells | Romeoville Egress Window Wells | Romeoville Well Covers | Romeoville Basement Window Well Covers