Environmental Rules in Waukegan, IL (2026)
3 verified environmental rules for Waukegan, Illinois, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Stormwater Management
Waukegan does not write its own stormwater code. Sec. 18-10 adopts the Lake County Watershed Development Ordinance by reference, as most recently amended by the county on July 11, 2023, and makes it fully effective inside city limits. Anyone developing, grading, or building in Waukegan is bound by the county's stormwater standards, not a separate city rulebook.
Waukegan Adopts County Stormwater Rules
Some RestrictionsWaukegan City Code § 18-10
The Lake County Watershed Development Ordinance, as most recently amended by the County of Lake on July 11, 2023, is hereby adopted by reference and is in full force and effect within the City of Waukegan and is found in its own compilation.
Flood Zones
Waukegan regulates grading, subdivision, and construction in its mapped floodplains through Sec. 6-92, layering flood-control requirements on top of the city's subdivision, zoning, and building code permits, and Sec. 6-116 blocks any zoning, building, or subdivision permit until the article's flood requirements are met.
Waukegan Floodplain Development Permit Rules
Some RestrictionsWaukegan City Code § 6-92(a)-(b)
(a)This article supplements the following ordinances of the city:(1)Subdivision ordinance;(2)Zoning ordinance;(3)The International Building Code or International Residential Code as revised.(b)The provisions of this article hereby further regulate:(1)The subdivision, layout and improvement of land, including drainage, underground utilities and service facilities.(2)The excavation, filling and g...
Flood Elevation Requirements
Waukegan sets its regulatory flood protection elevation 2.5 feet above the mapped high-water profile, and Sec. 6-131 carries that same 2.5-foot freeboard into construction rules, requiring every doorsill, windowsill, or wall opening to sit no lower than that elevation plus 2.5 feet.
Waukegan Flood Elevation Freeboard Requirement
Some RestrictionsWaukegan City Code § 6-95(a); § 6-131
(a)Profile drawings and schedules. Profile drawings and schedules provided in United States Geological Survey Hydrological Investigations Atlas, Series HA, dated 1964 through 1971, accompanying and identified as part of this article, are incorporated herein for the purpose of establishing regulatory flood protection elevations on or along the streams, channels and basins established in section ...
Looking for Lake County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Waukegan city rules.
Environmental Rules in Lake County →