ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
December 19,
1980
ALBERT EICHSTAEDT,
)
Petitioner,
v,
)
PCB
80—132
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
)
AGENCY and COUNTY OF
LAKE,
)
Illinois,
Respondents.
ROBERT MARKS, MARKS, MARKS
& KAPLAN, APPEARED ON BEHALF OF
PETITIONER;
PHILLIP
R.
VAN NESS, ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION
AGENCY
STAFF ATTORNEY, APPEARED ON BEHALF OF RESPONDENTS.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by I,
Goodman),~
On July 16,
1980 Albert Eichstaedt
(Eichstaedt)
filed
a
petition before the Board requesting variance from Chapter
3
Water Pollution of the Board~sregulations to allow a permit to
issue for the purpose of construction and hookup of a sewer
extension to a sewer
in the Village of Riverwoods,
Illinois.
Hearing was held in this matter on December
12,
1980.
In October,
1977 Eichstaedt purchased
a six-acre tract of
land in Riverwoods,
proposing to subdivide the property into four
lots upon which he would construct four homes.
At that time
Eichstaedt petitioned the Village of Riverwoods for approval of
this
proposed Deepwood Subdivision.
Certain problems surfaced,
combined with an alleged reluctance on the part of the Village of
Riverwood’s Board of Trustees to act,
which resulted
in approval
of the subdivision at about the same time the Riverwoods sewer
treatment plant was placed on restricted status by the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency (Agency).
By that time Eichstaedt
had allegedly expended approximately $64,000 in developing the
property.
Eichstaedt alleges that without the ability to construct the
subdivision,
future financing of the project is in jeopardy and
Eichstaedt may suffer financial penalties.
Balanced against
this
hardship is an alleged negligible impact upon the receiving system
from the four—house subdivision and the fact that the overload
system is currently being corrected by the Village of Riverwoods and
the County of Lake.
It appears from the record that the sewer
in
40—195
question suffers from inflow and infiltration,
caused by illegal
stormwater hookons and poorly designed or maintained manholes.
The sewer itself seems
to be sized sufficiently to carry the sani-
tary waste
load directed to it,
The Village estimates that infil-
tration will he sufficiently eliminated by the end of this year to
allow lifting of the restricted status.
The evidence indicates
that the property In question could not sustain an individual, septic-
type disposal system; permitting agencies involved would likely
deny any such application.
The Agency recommends denial of the petition based upon the
restricted status of the surcharging sewer system and the lack of
hardship.
The Agency does not challenge the allegation that the
potential additional waste water load on the sewer is not signifi-
cant.
The Agency does challenge,
however, whether Eichstaedt has
alleged sufficient hardship,
particularly since the restricted
status may be lifted in the near future due to the remedial work
being done by the Village and the County.
The Board finds that sufficient hardship exists when balanced
against the potential damage to the environment.
Due to the timing
of Eichstaedt’s funding for his project, he is in need of immediate
relief notwithstanding the potential lifting of the ban in the near
future.
The proposed discharge to the sewer system from the new
subdivision is not only insignificant hut is likely to occur after
the sewer has been removed from restricted status.
It appears that
Eichstaedt was put in his present position through the reasonable
pursuit of a business venture without prior warning of the problem.
Under the circumstances here,
the Board finds that it would be an
arbitrary and unreasonable hardship to deny the variance requested,
The Board shall therefore grant the variance with certain
restrictions.
This Opinion constitutes the findings of fact and conclusions
of
law of the Board
in this matter.
\Jariance is hereby granted to Albert Eichstaedt from Rule 962
(a)
of Chapter 3:
Water Pollution of the Board~sregulations
for
the purpose of construction and connection of a sewer extension
tributary to a sewer owned and operated by Lake County Public Works
Department and located in the Village of Riverwoods,
which sewer
extension is to he limited to the
se.rvice of four structures
to
be located in the Deepwood subdivision
in the Village of Riverwoods.
IT IS SO ORDERED,
I,
Christan
L. Moffett,
Clerk of the Illinois Pollution
Control Board, hereby certify that the above Opinion and Order
40—196
were adopted on the 4.~ay of
_____________
1980 by a vote
of5~
Illinois Pollution Control Board
40—197