Wheeling to build storm sewer to Heritage Lake

Wheeling officials will take advantage of the construction at Heritage Park to build a stormwater sewer pipe that will eventually funnel runoff from the Wickes property once it is developed, to the lake.

The village and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago agreed this week that a 572-foot stormwater pipe would be built to the lake, which is currently being expanded to take more water from Buffalo Creek during heavy rains.

“It’s very possible that the ... Wickes property will be developed, and the storm sewer would be used for that,” said Wheeling Director of Engineering John Tack.

“There are quite a few acres on the north side of Dundee Road, and we needed a way to get drainage from the north of Dundee into Heritage Lake.”

The agreement between Wheeling and the MWRD that is getting Heritage Park redeveloped as a major water storage facility allocates some of that space for Wheeling.

Water will enter the 72-inch-wide pipe through sewage drains and a system of pipes and catch systems before reaching the lake.

The system, while being constructed now will not be used in the near future. No water will run through the pipes until it is extended past Northgate Parkway and park district property.

“It’s the first phase to get the project rolling, and if it wasn’t for the park district being torn up, we would have put it off,” said Tack.

The pipe will cost $307,320, about $275,000 of which will be allocated from the Town Center TIF District.

For Village President Dean Argiris, the drain pipe is a big plus for any developer looking at the Wickes property.

“That’s a huge value for a developer because it gives them more site area to build,” said Argiris.