Cleanup near Waukegan’s south lakefront nears finish line; EPA review underway for former Fansteel site

Waukegan — Project managers updating the Environmental and Sustainability Committee on Sept. 2 said remediation work at the 11-acre former Fansteel site on the city’s south lakefront is substantially complete and under Illinois EPA review, and that the work could receive a draft “no further remediation” determination later this year if outstanding documents resolve quickly.

Overview and funding Colin Brown, project manager with The Deagan Group, said the city received a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) brownfield cleanup grant for $400,000, matched by roughly 20 percent of city funds for a total remediation budget of about $480,000. Brown recounted that the Illinois EPA performed a targeted brownfield assessment in 2024 — providing current soil and groundwater data — and that the city used grant funds for active remediation and engineered controls.

Work completed and protections Contractors removed multiple impacted soil areas in fall 2024, installed an engineered barrier of clean fill (imported from a licensed facility), and capped the site with approximately three feet of clean material to protect future users. Brown said the cleanup work included excavation, off-site disposal and import of certified clean material; the consultants used a local contractor for grading work and a landfill source in Zion for clean fill.

Regulatory status and timetable In mid-2025 the city submitted a combined site investigation, remedial objectives and remedial action plan — a large submission Brown called an “encyclopedia” of the work. In August Illinois EPA returned comments and a conservative list of follow-up items; Brown said the remaining tasks are mostly desktop documentation. If the city resolves the comments in September and the Illinois EPA completes its 60-day review window, the site could receive a draft “no further remediation” (NFR) letter in December; a final NFR would be recorded against the deed and would make the parcel more readily marketable to developers.

Community engagement The project team held a public roundtable at Trinity AME Church in 2024 and said the Chicago Tribune covered the cleanup during the public engagement effort. Brown told the committee the site is a pivotal “connecting piece of the puzzle” for remediating the south lakefront and linking to neighboring Brownfield parcels.

What happens next If Illinois EPA issues an NFR, the city expects the deed restrictions and engineered- controls (the clean cap) to be documented so developers can plan future uses. Brown urged continued community interest and said staff will continue coordination with Illinois EPA until the record is complete.

Source: presentation to Environmental and Sustainability Committee by Colin Brown, project manager (The Deagan Group) at the Sept. 2, 2025 committee meeting.