Byline: David R. Kazak Daily Herald Staff Writer

A new housing development near the Kane County courthouse is flooding the county's land, officials said, creating a veritable wetland and possibly contaminating the county's own storm water retention pond, which is also a popular fishing site.

The courthouse buildings themselves are not affected by the abundance of water. Even so, the problem is alarming to at least one county leader.

"It's a significant issue," said Cathy Hurlbut, a Republican Kane County Board member from Elgin and chairwoman of the county's administration committee. In that role, Hurlbut oversees the county's buildings and grounds.

She said water is spilling in from the Fisher Farms development and says the storm water retention pond that's been built there is undersized.

"Obviously, they don't have sufficient (storm water) storage capacity," Hurlbut said.

The Fisher Farms development is a 725-home project built by Kimball Homes and Cambridge Homes. At least two of the development's retention ponds are near the county's land, Geneva Economic Director Chris Aiston said.

"There was a substantial amount of engineering that went into the project," he said. …