Flossmoor residents Monday called on the village board to do something about flooding in the village, an issue they say has gone on for too long.
Flossmoor residents Monday called on the village board to do something about flooding in the village, an issue they say has gone on for too long.
During the remotely-held board meeting, residents questioned what the board planned to do to rectify flooding issues after nearly 4 inches of rain fell from May 14 to 18, with 2.74 inches falling on Sunday alone.
Public Works Director John Brunke told the H-F Chronicle that rainwater was concentrated at areas that have a history of flooding – the Flossmoor Road viaduct, Berry Lane, Dartmouth Road and Heather Road. He said his department didn’t get any reports of flood damage but did receive reports about basement sewer backups.
Public Works sent out crews to pump water from rear yard areas around the village, he said.
Warren Engelburg, a Butterfield Lane resident, sent an email to the board, questioning the effectiveness of the Butterfield Road culvert, which he said was built nearly six years ago to mitigate previous flooding issues.
“I don’t believe the project was adequately engineered to prevent the damage occurring downstream from the Olympia Fields catch basin which diverts rushing water into the creek through our property,” he said. “My property and my neighbors’ property, being so close to the culvert, suffers the brunt of what has turned out to be poor design and poor engineering.”
Resident Larry Kane said he and his neighbors get gallons of raw sewage and water surrounding their homes on Evans Road after heavy rainfall, a complaint he’s voiced before.
“If the village cannot take care of the infrastructure of the sewer lines, why should we, the homeowners, have to spend $15,000 so that the village sewage doesn’t come into our home?” he said. “With the taxes we pay, the attitude of the mayor and the trustees when we address this is deplorable. I guarantee if this happened over and over again to any of their houses, things would be different.”
Resident Stan Harris also noted the inability of sewers to drain flood water near his home on Berry Lane. He called this a “public health emergency.”
“You cannot drive on Berry Lane,” Harris said. “If there was an emergency or if someone had to go to the hospital, they could not do this.”
Harris appeared before the board last fall after a Sept. 27 storm brought heavy flooding to the village. He said he believed Flossmoor would start addressing flooding issues by early 2020.
“I have not seen anything on the website or anything that shows that this has been addressed and the photos that I have from yesterday evening prove that to me,” Harris said.
In response to the complaints, Mayor Paul Braun said the village takes residents’ concerns seriously and is in need of more money and information to address them effectively. He said the village is seeking funding for infrastructure repairs. He directed the village staff to come up with an estimate for infrastructure projects within the next 120 days.
“I and the board want to know over the next 120 days what kind of money we are looking at to get this work done,” Braun said. “Then residents will know, and if the board and I decide to put this up for a referendum, then people will have the ability to decide how we’re going to pay for this.”