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Record of Proceedings

Lake County Committee of the Whole Meeting on MeadowView Material Transfer Facility Siting - August 7, 2026

Committee Meetings — Friday, August 7, 2026
BodyLake County, Illinois
SessionCommittee Meetings
DateFriday, August 7, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 51:36
Transcript — Verbatim
0:13

Hey everybody, today is uh what date?

0:17

Today's Friday, August 7 at uh we are starting our meeting at 8:36 a.m.

0:23

Um I want to apologize for our late start.

0:26

We just had some technical difficulties.

0:29

So um if you join me in a pledge of allegiance, please.

0:34

I think it's the United States of America and one of the individual with the receiving.

0:48

Thank you.

0:49

Uh may I have a roll call, please to reset?

0:53

Yes.

0:54

Member Altenberg?

0:55

Here.

0:56

Member Campos.

0:58

Let me get zoom up so I can see.

1:00

Okay.

1:01

Uh member Casman here.

1:04

Member Clark.

1:06

Here.

1:06

Member Danforth.

1:08

Member Frank?

1:09

Here.

1:10

Chair Hart.

1:11

Here.

1:11

Member Hewitt.

1:13

Member Hunter.

1:14

Here.

1:15

Member Kniesnik.

1:17

Member Kyle.

1:19

Member Maine.

1:22

Member Park.

1:23

Here.

1:25

Member Peterson.

1:27

Present.

1:27

Member Roberts.

1:29

Here.

1:30

Member Schlick.

1:32

Member Volitzick.

1:34

Here.

1:35

Member Wasick.

1:38

All right.

1:38

Thank you.

1:39

I do not believe two, four, six, eight, nine.

1:42

Oh, ten.

1:43

We do have a quorum.

1:44

How do you like that?

1:45

All right.

1:45

Well, thanks.

1:46

We have a quorum, and we do not vote at our committee of the whole, so it's really not that necessary that we have a quorum in terms of voting, but because we have a physical quorum that does allow members Paris and Valitzik to uh to participate in any other board members that come on online.

2:04

Um, and I just want to make sure everybody knows this is going to be on our agenda for next Tuesday.

2:10

So, item uh we have no unfinished business.

2:12

Item 7.1 is a discussion of the evidentiary record and hearing officers recommendation for the site location application for MeadowView Material Transfer Facility by Waste Management of Illinois.

2:24

Um, it was recommended to us by the state's attorney's office that we do host this meeting as a committee of the whole uh rather than go to committee.

2:33

So thank you very much for those of you who are able to attend in person today.

2:36

And I will turn it over to our county administrator's office.

2:40

Ruth Ann.

2:41

Good morning, Than Hall, Assistant County Administrator.

2:44

The purpose of today's committee of the whole meeting is to consider the application for local siting approval of the proposed Meadow View Material Transfer Facility in unincorporated Grays Lake, adjacent to the existing countryside landfill at 31725, North Route 83.

3:00

This marks the final phase of waste management of Illinois's local siting application process.

3:06

That process began with the initial presentation of the proposed facility to the planning building zoning and environment committee in May of 2024, followed by the county board's approval of the host agreement in January 2025.

3:20

The host agreement established the terms between the county and the applicant, but did not constitute local siting approval.

3:28

On February 13th, 2026, waste management submitted its formal application for local siting approval, and a public hearing was conducted on May 18th and 19th, 2026, during which testimony, evidence, and public comment were received and entered into the record.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Waste Management█████████████████████████████████████████████84%
Procedural██████11%
Public Engagement███5%
Summary of Proceedings

Lake County Committee of the Whole Meeting on MeadowView Material Transfer Facility Siting - August 7, 2026

The Lake County Board Committee of the Whole met on August 7, 2026, at 8:36 a.m. to review the evidentiary record and hearing officer's recommendation for the local siting approval of the proposed MeadowView Material Transfer Facility by Waste Management of Illinois. The facility would be located in unincorporated Grays Lake, adjacent to the existing Countryside Landfill. The meeting, held via hybrid format, was the final phase of the siting process; a formal vote on a resolution is scheduled for the County Board meeting on August 11, 2026. The committee reviewed each of the nine statutory siting criteria based on testimony and evidence from a public hearing held May 18-19, 2026. The hearing officer recommended approval, and both county staff and SWALCO attorneys also recommended approval with conditions.

Consent Calendar

  • No consent calendar items were presented.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were heard during the meeting. Written public comment from the Village of Libertyville was included in the record, raising concerns about operating hours, odor, and sound; the hearing officer considered these in his recommendations.

Discussion Items

  • Criterion 1 (Necessity): Karen Fox (State's Attorney) presented that Waste Management demonstrated the facility is necessary to accommodate waste needs of Lake County based on a 20-year planning period, closure of the Countryside Landfill (within a year) and another landfill (within a few years), and increased costs/environmental impact of shipping waste outside the county. The committee reached consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 2 (Design, Location, Operation – Public Health/Safety/Welfare): The facility meets location standards (1,000 ft from dwellings, not in floodplain, no historic/archaeological sites, no endangered species, FAA requirements met). Operating procedures include waste identification, load checking, and controls for litter, odor, noise, dust, and vectors. Member Wasick asked about ingress/egress (via Route 83, exit at 137) and visibility from Route 137; Don Moran (Waste Management attorney) confirmed photographs in the application show the building is barely visible from 137 due to landscaping. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 3 (Compatibility & Property Value): The facility is located to minimize incompatibility; surrounding land uses are 58% open space/vegetation, 18% office/warehouse, 11% residential. Nearest residence is >1,000 ft. A property value impact study showed no negative impact. No objections were filed. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 4 (Floodplain): The facility is not located within a 100-year floodplain. SWALCO's Walter Willis confirmed that both Stormwater Management and County DOT reviewed the application and raised no concerns. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 5 (Fire, Spills, Accidents): Waste Management presented a comprehensive plan including fire prevention, spill prevention, emergency action plan, training, and equipment. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 6 (Traffic Patterns): Testimony based on field observations, traffic counts, capacity analysis, gap studies. Peak facility traffic does not coincide with street peak hours; safe entry/exit distances were demonstrated. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 7 (Hazardous Waste): The facility will not treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste; no emergency response plan required. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 8 (Consistency with Solid Waste Plan): The facility is consistent with the 2024 Lake County Solid Waste Management Plan update. Consensus to approve.
  • Criterion 9 (Regulated Recharge Area): The only designated regulated recharge area in Illinois is in Peoria; the facility is not located in one. Consensus to approve.
  • Additional Consideration (Previous Operating Experience): No evidence of prior convictions or violations by Waste Management. The committee affirmed its approval of criteria 2 and 5.
  • Special Siting Conditions (Items 1-16): The hearing officer recommended 16 optional conditions. Karen Fox recommended striking conditions 14, 15, and 16 because they duplicate existing binding agreements (host agreement with the county, master agreement with Grays Lake) to which the county is not a party. The committee concurred. Member Wasick asked about condition 1 (operating hours 6:30-3:30 M-F, Sat 6:30-2) and whether hours could be extended; he noted that condition 2 allows changes with approval of the County Administrator and Health Department, but the record is closed for the siting process. Member Wasick also inquired about enforcement of condition 5 (litter patrol); it was clarified that complaints would be handled through communication with Waste Management or local jurisdictions, and Waste Management's attorney confirmed prompt response.

Key Outcomes

  • The committee provided guidance to approve all nine statutory criteria, with no objections.
  • The committee agreed to adopt siting conditions 1 through 13, and to reject conditions 14, 15, and 16.
  • Staff will prepare a resolution reflecting these findings for final action at the August 11, 2026 County Board meeting. The resolution will attach the hearing officer's recommendations with the stricken conditions noted.
  • The meeting was adjourned after brief remarks from Member Wasick, who thanked staff and noted Waste Management has been a good neighbor.

Meeting Transcript

Hey everybody, today is uh what date? Today's Friday, August 7 at uh we are starting our meeting at 8:36 a.m. Um I want to apologize for our late start. We just had some technical difficulties. So um if you join me in a pledge of allegiance, please. I think it's the United States of America and one of the individual with the receiving. Thank you. Uh may I have a roll call, please to reset? Yes. Member Altenberg? Here. Member Campos. Let me get zoom up so I can see. Okay. Uh member Casman here. Member Clark. Here. Member Danforth. Member Frank? Here. Chair Hart. Here. Member Hewitt. Member Hunter. Here. Member Kniesnik. Member Kyle. Member Maine. Member Park. Here. Member Peterson. Present. Member Roberts. Here. Member Schlick. Member Volitzick. Here. Member Wasick. All right. Thank you. I do not believe two, four, six, eight, nine. Oh, ten. We do have a quorum. How do you like that? All right. Well, thanks. We have a quorum, and we do not vote at our committee of the whole, so it's really not that necessary that we have a quorum in terms of voting, but because we have a physical quorum that does allow members Paris and Valitzik to uh to participate in any other board members that come on online. Um, and I just want to make sure everybody knows this is going to be on our agenda for next Tuesday. So, item uh we have no unfinished business. Item 7.1 is a discussion of the evidentiary record and hearing officers recommendation for the site location application for MeadowView Material Transfer Facility by Waste Management of Illinois.

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