A recent uptick in drainage complaints from residents in Clarendon Hills has Village staff looking into options for improving the stormwater capacity and efficiency within the village.
“The biggest issue we have now is deep basements that in certain areas become basically wells that have sump pumps that continuously discharge,” Village Manager Zach Creer said.
He said the drainage issues are mostly about nuisance backyard flooding.
“It’s something we are considering addressing for new construction,” Creer said.
While there has been an increase in complaints about drainage, concerns expressed by residents about this problem are not new.
“It’s been substantial and time-consuming,” Creer said of Village staff dealing with the drainage issue. “We fixed a ton of issues in conjunction with the new road standards and (Special Service Area) road program so it’s gotten better.”
Creer said he believes there are multiple reasons why there has been a recent increase in complaints from residents about drainage issues.
“This year has been wet, which has increased calls,” he said. “I think also there’s been some cultural changes after COVID that increased dog ownership and backyard entertaining, which makes nuisance backyard flooding more impactful.
“The village was not designed with a proper stormwater system, and development and changes in climate may have increased flooding issues.”
Creer said the Village passed a strict stormwater code about 10 years ago, which requires new development to store extra water onsite.
“So, in general, new development should help alleviate local stormwater issues,” he said “Public improvements were identified in the early 2010s, but in general it is millions of dollars for some minor gains on just a few properties. Therefore, they have never passed cost-benefit analysis.”
The Village does have a grant program, as well, for private improvements that address nuisance flooding, Creer said.
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
