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Waste Management wants to expand truck parking at Wheeling facility

A plan to build a new parking area for garbage trucks at a Waste Management transfer center in Wheeling will mean more trucks on nearby roads, the company confirmed.

But a Waste Management representative insisted the plan shouldn't affect daytime traffic flow in the area because the trucks leave early in the morning and return at scattered times throughout the day.

"The village does not anticipate there being an issue," Village Manager Jon Sfondilis said.

Waste Management wants to build the parking area at its facility at 350 Sumac Road.

The space being eyed is on the north side of the complex, closer to Industrial Lane. It's now used as a storage yard for empty dumpsters, said Nick Berner, an engineer representing Waste Management.

The dumpsters now on the property would be removed, Berner said.

Berner and the village board discussed the proposal last week during a meeting held remotely due to the COVID-19 crisis.

About 40 trucks would park in the new lot and refuel overnight, Berner said. That's in addition to the roughly 100 trucks that park overnight at the center now.

Twenty of those additional trucks would enter and exit using Industrial Lane, Berner said. The other 20 would enter and exit using Sumac Road.

The stormwater sewer system on the property would be updated and connect to the village's system, Berner said. Landscaping would be added, too.

During last week's meeting, trustees asked questions and made some aesthetic recommendations.

Trustee Mary Papantos raised a concern about the impact of additional trucks on Industrial Road's surface, which the village widened and resurfaced last year. A sidewalk, curbs, gutters, underground sanitary and stormwater sewers and underground water mains were installed, too.

The board cast no formal vote and instead referred the matter to the village's plan commission for additional review.

Waste Management hasn't submitted a timetable for the proposed project.

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