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City of Kewanee to Amend City Code and Pay $42,000+ to Resolve Water Shutoff Lawsuit

June 23, 2026

HENRY COUNTY — The City of Kewanee has agreed to pay $42,170 in damages to five Prairie State Legal Services (PSLS) clients and enact changes to its Municipal Code to resolve a 2025 lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that the City violated the constitutional rights of PSLS’ clients, who are mobile home park residents, by threatening to shut off their water due to the park owner’s unpaid utility bills.

The lawsuit, filed in June 2025, pushed back against a city policy that allowed Kewanee to terminate water service without notifying the actual residents living on the property. Following a July 2025 order from the Illinois Appellate Court, the City was forced to restore water service to the mobile home park. In its opinion, the Appellate Court found that the plaintiffs showed a likelihood of success of the merits on their claims, and “raised a genuine constitutional question” regarding the City’s actions.

Because the City’s actions complied with its existing Municipal Code, the settlement mandates changes to local water shutoff procedures. Within 90 days, the City of Kewanee must amend its code to include the following protections:

  • Mandatory Tenant Notice: Water service cannot be discontinued unless both the property owner and the tenant receive notice of delinquency and a 30-day opportunity to fix the issue.
  • No Retroactive Liability: Tenants or mobile home park residents cannot be held liable for past due amounts owed by a landlord or mobile home park owner.
  • Fair Future Billing: If the City requires tenants to pay for future water usage, it must provide 30 days' written notice and bill only for reasonably calculated individual amounts.

Under the terms of the settlement, the five plaintiffs will share the $42,170 damages award, and all water balances accrued through March 2026 have been waived.

Katie Liss, one of the attorneys who worked on the case, says “Mobile home park residents are in a uniquely vulnerable position because they own their homes but rent the land underneath. The changes to the Municipal Code agreed to by Kewanee will provide critical protections for area residents.”

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PSLS offers free legal services to low income persons and those older than 60 who have serious civil legal problems and need legal help to solve them. PSLS has 11 offices serving 36 counties throughout Northern and Central Illinois. All offices are accessible to people with disabilities. Free legal help is available in most languages.