ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

October 25, 1973

WAUKEGAN

ICE

ARENA,

INC.

)

Petitioner,

PCB 73—302

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by Mr. Henss)

Petitioner requests variance from Order No. 7 of League of

Women Voters v. North Shore Sanitary District, PCB 70-7, 12, 13

and 14, which prohibits further connection to sewers of the North

Shore Sanitary District until the District demonstrates that it

can adequately treat the waste from those ne~~sources. Petitioner

wishes to connect a new ice arena to the sanitary sewer tributary

to the Clavey Road Sewage Treatment Plant, owned and operated by

the North Shore Sanitary District (NSSD)

On June 13, 1973 Petitioner signed a contract for the

purchase of about 10 acres of land near Greenbay Road and Grand

Avenue in Waukegan. Petitioner proposes to build a commercial

ice arena on the land and states that it has already expended

$100,000 for the development. The expenses include “$50,000 in

the form of an irrevocable letter of credit deposited as non—

refundable earnest money” and “$16,000 deposited in the form of

a non—refundable mortgage standby fee in connection with the

financing’ of the land purchase. Petitioner alleges that mortgage

financing for the ice arena is contingent upon the availability

of a sanitary sewer, without which Petitioner would be unable to

complete its contractual obligations and would forfeit all sums

invested and deposited.

Petitioner further claims that the granting of the variance

would impose no hardship on the general public since the proposed

use would “merely entail the introduction into the sanitary

sewer

system of human waste and minimal water in conjunction with toilet

facilities of a population equivalent of eleven (11)

,

approxi-

mating an addition to the system of less than three (3) single

family residences”.

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The Clavey Road plant is a secondary treatment plant which

until recently had a design average capacity of 4.5 MGD and

maximum secondary treatment capability of 6.0 MGD. Flows in

excess 6.0 MGD received only primary treatment and were then

combined with secondary treated sewage prior to being discharged

into the plant’s aerated lagoon. Effluent from this lagoon is

chlorinated prior to being discharged to the Skokie Ditch. The

plant was overloaded with flows averaging 7.8 MGD during the

first eight months of 1973.

The EPA now informs us that “10 million gallon per day

capacity is presently possible. Full secondary treatment (18

MGD) expected by March 1, 1974. Advanced treatment by

September 1, 1975”. With this added capacity we believe we can

continue to ease the sewer ban in individual cases. Here, some

personal hardship exists. In addition, the connection of the

ice rink to the sewer system will apparently not result in a

large net increase in the load on the North Shore Sanitary

District. The ice rink is to be located well within the boundaries

of the North Shore Sanitary District and will probably draw most

of its patrons from that area. Net increase in hydraulic load on

the sewer system is likely to be small. Since construction of

the ice arena has not even commenced, it is possible that the

Clavey Road Plant will be giving full secondary treatment before

this ice arena is actually put to use. We will, therefore,

grant the variance.

ORDER

It is the order of the Board that Petitioner Waukegan Ice

Arena, Inc. be granted variance from Order No. 7 of League of

Women Voters vs. North Shore Sanitary District, PCB 70—7, 12,

13 and 14, for connection of its proposed ice rink to the North

Shore Sanitary District’s sewer.

I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certify the b ye Opinion and Order was adopted

this ~~4II

day of

________,

1973 by a vote of ~ to ~j

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