ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

January 16, 1973

FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF SPRINGFIELD,

as trustee of Trust #3005

v.

)

PCB 72—365

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

OPINION

OF

THE BOARD

(by Mr. Dumelle)

This opinion

is

in support of the order entered herein

on December 12,

1972.

Hearinq was held on ~ovemher

21,

1972.

This is a petition for variance to allow sewer connections

from a new 36—unit apartment building complex in Springfield

at 110—130 West Lake Drive.

Petitioner contracted

to

our-

chase the property in August,

1971,

subject to certain zoning

chances and obtaining sewer taps.

mhereafter petitioner was

given verbal assurance by representatives

of

the

Springfield

Sanitary District that sewer taps would be available.

Based

upon that representation, petitioner purchased the

land

in

September,

1971 and began construction

in December,

1971.

In reliance upon the assurance,

petitioner undertook

to con-

tract for the construction and also to arrange a commitment

for temporary and permanent financing.

The owners have already

personally invested around S75,000 cash and have incurred

personal liability for another ~400,000.

On

July 12,

1972,

the Agency imposed

a sewer ban

in the

Springfield area until such time as the main sewage treat-

ment plant will he expanded.

The ex~ansionis exoected to be

conoleted in March,

1973.

All waste

from petitioner’s apartments will be domestic.

The average daily discharge will he 8700 gallons

and would

contain approximately 15 iounds BOD and

19 pounds suspended

solids per day.

The waste would discharge into

a 15’ sewer

west of West Lake Drive

and

then travel

in a northerly direction

to

a

pum~

station.

From there an

18’ force main connects

to a

66*1

sewer which goes to the Cook Street

ourno station.

From there the system travels

northward

to

the Eighth Street

treatment plant.

The Agency has recommended that

the variance he granted.

We aaree.

Petitioner relied upon

tho

Sanitary

District’s

sewer tap assurances when they purchased

the

oro~erty.

6

—

549

---

—2—

Furthermore,

construction

was

well

under

way

prior

to

the

-~cxencv’s

sewer

ban

on

July

12.

To

deny

the

variance

at

this

point

would

impose

an

unreasonable

hardship

on

the

petitioner.

This

opinion constitutes

the Board’s findings

of fact

and conclusions

of

law.

I, Christan Moffett, Clerk of the Pollution Control Board,

certi~v

that

the

Board

adopted

the

above

Opinion

this

16th

day of

January

,1973

by

a

vote

of

3—0