The City of Belvidere consists of 12,455 square miles of land. This includes 122 miles of streets with 4 miles of improved alleyways, making travel easy and efficient. Boone County is well connected to the region via road, air and rail. Interstate 90, US Highway 20, and State Highways 76 and 173 serve as the primary road transportation routes in the County and to metro areas. The Interstate 90 Tollway is a major interstate and intrastate transportation route that runs towards Chicago. There is currently access from the Tollway at the Genoa / Belvidere Road and Irene Road exits. Additional Tollway interchanges are located across the Winnebago County line to the west of Boone County at Business 20 and Rockton Road and an additional interchange at Highway 173. Daily freight rail service is provided by the Union Pacific Railroad on tracks crossing the County from east to west passing through the City of Belvidere. The Poplar Grove Airport on Highway 76 is a local airport serving the surrounding communities. Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, a national and international hub, is located approximately 55 miles from the City of Belvidere on Interstate 90. The Rockford Airport, a mid-west regional UPS air-freight hub, is a short 20 miles to the west of Belvidere. The Rockford Airport also offers limited national and international passenger service on various carriers.
The water and sewer departments are owned and operated by the City of Belvidere. Water is supplied by seven deep wells ranging in depth from 120 feet to 1,800 feet, capable of producing over 12.2 million gallons of water per day (mgd). In addition to the seven wells, there are also three elevated water storage tanks with a capacity of 1.1 million gallons and two ground storage reservoirs with a capacity of 1.935 million gallons. The average annual pumpage of water is over one billion gallons. The water is pumped through more than 679,000 lineal feet of water main to serve our residents with 1,245 fire hydrants to provide fire protection. The entire water system is computer controlled (SCADA) to maintain consistent water pressure. The water system is operated in accordance with EPA regulations under the direction of a state-certified licensed operator.
Belvidere’s activated sludge/tertiary filter waste water treatment plant has a capacity of 5.85 mgd. Sewage is collected through more than 564,000 lineal feet of sanitary sewer main, over 28,000 lineal feet of sanitary force main, and 12 sanitary sewer lift stations. The sanitary sewer system is operated in accordance with EPA regulations under the direction of a state-certified licensed operator.
Our growing community is experiencing the excitement of greeting new citizens, while also strengthening the relationships of longtime residents. We hope you enjoy your visit, and visit us often. We know you will want to come back again soon!
Moorhead, Virginia B, editor. Boone County Then and Now. Boone County Bicentennial Commission. Belvidere, Illinois, 1976.