UPDATE: The Village Board approved this project at their meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 2.
A plan to build a catch basin for sewer overflows during heavy rains received several procedural approvals by the Plan Commission Wednesday, moving it forward to the full Village Board.
The basin, which will be placed on a on land once part of the Homestead Acres property, is intended to prevent peak flow from going into Racine's sewerage system, which is estimated to occur two to three times a year.
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If the village applies before Sept. 30, it is edible for a 10 percent forgiveness grant from the state.
"We are not sure if we are going to do it in two or three phases because we may try to maximize that grant and do two phases right away," said Thomas Ludwig, an engineer with Foth Infrastructure and Environment, a firm contracted to work on the project.
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The total cost of the project would be $6.1 million. Village President Ron Coutts asked Ludwig whether the basin will help future development in Franksville.
"Absolutely. As I mentioned, the infill right now is fine, but eventually down the road, we will need to do this," Ludwig said.
The basin facility will be contained in a residential structure that appears to be a house. The structure will be surrounded by landscaping and trees.
"The idea is that when you are driving down K, it won't stick out like a sore thumb," Ludwig said.
John Bjelajac, an attorney for the village, told the plan commission the facility will not produce odors.
"We will have odor controls and they will work," he said. "If for (any) reason they don't work, we will make it work. We will not create a public nuisance here."
The basin is needed because the current sewerage system that serves the Franksville area is close to capacity, according to village officials and engineers.
If the amount of sewerage flow exceeds the capacity allotted in the Sewer Agreement they made with Racine, it would require the Village to upgrade their lift station to handle the flow and they would also be charged by the City of Racine for exceeding their capacity.
