June 04, 2025

Monday night’s Shannon Village Board meeting began not with routine updates or ceremonial motions, but with the kind of community uprising most towns hope to avoid. By 7:00 p.m., every seat inside Village Hall was taken, as more crowded the foyer, standing shoulder-to-shoulder just to hear their neighbors speak out—frustrated, angry, and demanding answers about their water.

“We’ve spent $5 million and we still have bad water,” declared one resident during the heated public comment period. The remark echoed through the packed room and set the tone for what would become a contentious—but revealing—evening.

The intensity of the night felt familiar to anyone who's attended a Freeport City Council meeting. The tone, the mistrust, and the unwavering calls for accountability, transparency, and basic decency in government mirrored Freeport’s own governance battles. But in one key way, Shannon’s board proved different—they actually responded. Questions were answered. Concerns acknowledged. Public servants, for the most part, acted like public servants.

And yet, major concerns remained.

Boiling Tensions Over Water

The Village of Shannon has spent years and millions of taxpayer dollars on a comprehensive overhaul of its water system. But despite the investment, residents say the water still isn’t safe or drinkable.

Some pointed fingers at the engineering firm Fehr Graham, a regional powerhouse that seems to hold a monopoly on municipal infrastructure projects throughout Northwest Illinois. Others demanded transparency from the board itself, particularly about potential conflicts of interest involving Village Clerk Denise Hammer.

A growing chorus of residents questioned whether Hammer’s family connections to Fehr Graham were influencing the village’s decisions. Though officials quickly deflected, the facts are troubling: Hammer’s son-in-law, Jorge Bueno Arguello-Hammer, was hired by Fehr Graham in 2022 as an Engineering Technician in their Rockford office. According to Fehr Graham’s own webside and regional employment records, he has worked on Computer Aided Design (CAD) for Fehr Graham infrastructure projects. The company just chose to leave off the hyphenated Hammer that Jorge uses on his social media accounts. The board’s refusal to acknowledge this plainly has only fueled suspicion.

“It’s not about the relationship,” one resident said. “It’s about the fact that they seem to be attempting to hide it.”

A Familiar Face with Familiar Ties

Perri Wilson, Shannon’s Water & Sewer Superintendent since 2021, opened the technical presentation and claimed she’s received “zero complaints” about water quality. That statement was met with audible groans from the crowd.

But it was Darin Stykel, Senior Project Manager at Fehr Graham and Freeport’s current Public Works Director, who truly stirred the room. Stykel, a central figure in both communities’ infrastructure efforts, laid out the history of the project. According to him, Shannon's water is now “fully compliant” with state and federal standards.

What’s causing the discoloration, odor, and bad taste? “Old pipes and pressure changes,” he said—then poorly chose an example, suggesting local firefighters slamming valves shut could be the cause. That remark drew outrage and forced Stykel to clarify he wasn’t blaming first responders.

The project included five major upgrades:

• New wells and a treatment plant

• A new water tower

• Over $100,000 in underground line replacements

• Decommissioning of wells dating back to 1948

• HMO treatment and barium softening to address radium and hardness

While Reverse Osmosis (RO) was considered—an expensive but superior method—Shannon went with the cheaper, lower-maintenance solution. Still, many residents now believe cost-saving came at too high a price.

Fighting4Freeport’s Take on the Technologies

RO systems offer top-tier purification but at a cost. Instead, Shannon uses a combination of:

• HMO Filtration: Removes radium

• Activated Carbon: Eliminates VOCs, odors, and chlorine

• Barium Softening: Reduces water hardness

While these are industry-standard solutions, their effectiveness depends on upkeep and honesty. Without transparency and community trust, even the best system raises doubts.

A Question of Qualifications

When local water expert Bill Files presented test results showing chlorine levels of 5ppm—above the legal limit of 4ppm, Stykel dismissed his concern, asking whether Files held a municipal water license. The crowd was left wondering: Does Stykel? Or is Fehr Graham the one holding all the credentials—and all the cards?

The incident only deepened concern about chlorine and lead levels—both of which RO could have helped mitigate. According to research by Fighting4Freeport, chlorine levels over 2ppm can cause odor and taste issues and excessive exposure can lead to health problems, especially when combined with old lead service lines.

The Fehr Graham Monopoly

When asked why Fehr Graham continues to be awarded every major infrastructure contract, Stykel dismissed the idea of competitive bidding altogether. Under Illinois’ Quality-Based Selection (QBS) process, engineering firms are hired based on qualifications, not price. While legal, the process does little to reassure a community that already feels locked out and shut down.

And when Stykel reminded the crowd that Fehr Graham employs over 250 people, many heard it as a threat, not a defense.

The Elephants in the Room

Unspoken, but palpable, was the shadow of Melissa Trumpy’s disappearance—a case that remains unsolved. Trumpy was last seen at the home of Shannon's Village Clerk Denise Hammer. According to publicly circulated accounts and statements made by community members and advocates, many believe Hammer was the last person to see her alive, before leaving her alone with her son, Derek Hammer.

The other was the suspicion of the village's finances and appropriation of funds. When residents pushed for a forensic audit, the board refused. “Let’s wait and see,” they said—referring to a switch in audit firms. The crowd responded with laughter and disbelief.

Why Freeport Should Pay Attention

To the citizens of Freeport: what’s happening in Shannon matters. This is not just about one town, one water system, or one corrupt official. This is about a pattern—a network of power, silence, and favoritism that stretches across county lines.

When a public official’s family gets hired by the firm receiving millions in public dollars, and that firm’s project manager is in the backrooms throughout multiple municipalities—that’s not coincidence. That’s consolidation of power.

Fighting4Freeport believes the water crisis is merely a symptom of a deeper, darker system. A web of influence, financial reward, and cover-up that’s enabled mysterious deaths, missing people, and public money that never seems to reach the public.

We are committed to shining a light on this web—not just to expose the spider, but to protect the communities caught in it.

Final Words

Unfortunately in the end, it took Facebook rants or hashtags to bring about answers to Shannon—it took people showing up, speaking out, and demanding accountability. One resident said it best:

“We need people of action. It’s our job to keep the board accountable.”

Freeport, are you listening?

-Fighting4Freeport