New 8th Ward alderman: Des Plaines should cash in on casino - DailyHerald.com

From a Daily Herald article By Madhu Krishnamurthy

New 8th Ward alderman: Des Plaines should cash in on casino - DailyHerald.com

Our new alderman is waisting no time finding ways to wisely spend the anticipated revenues from the new casino.

Excerpts from the Herald article:

"Charewicz said casino and future sales tax revenues will help ensure the city continues with flood prevention efforts, and provide funding of storm and sanitary sewer improvements."

"The city recently completed a major storm sewer upgrade in the 8th Ward along Marshall Drive to alleviate flooding as part of its Stormwater Master Plan.
" 'My ward is diagnosing and trouble-shooting the flooding issues (to determine) where is the next step … where is the money best being spent, ' Charewicz said."
"Charewicz said in severe rainstorms the city’s sanitary sewer system fills up and can’t handle the excess water, causing backups in basements. 'A sanitary sewer infiltration study should be conducted this spring,' he said. The study will determine how the storm water is seeping into the system, he added."


Mike Charewicz officially takes on his term Monday, May 2, 2011

Unfinished Business

While it's encouraging that the 8th Ward's portion of work in The Storm Water Master Plan has been completed, it's effectiveness remains to be seen. It's important to understand that the cause of our flood issues are twofold:

1. street flooding during moderate to heavy rain events and
2. basement flooding and seepage due to a surcharge in the sanitary sewer system.

According to the City, this surcharge is caused by excessive infiltration of groundwater during heavy rain and winter melt off. These events cause the sanitary system to fill with water faster than it can drain away, thus backing up into basements and filling foundation drain tile that connects to the system. For example, during the heavy storms of July 23-24, 2010, the corner of Dover and Pennsylvania was flooded. The extent of the flooding caused the water level to extend past the sidewalk and onto my property by over 5 feet. The sanitary system filled to a level approximately 18" above my basement slab. This means that without my standpipe, I would have had 18" of water in my basement. As it was -- I still experienced seepage through my slab and around my foundation.

This marked the third consecutive year that I had water in my basement due to a surcharge in the sanitary system during rain events. What is worth noting is that the rate of drainage is significantly slower than that of the storm system. While the street flooding subsided by 10:00 am, the surcharge in the sanitary system did not recede to a level below my basement slab until 5:00 pm. I continued to take water long after the street was clear. It is because of this that I have reservations about the effectiveness of the new flood control work that was completed on Marshall this past Fall 2010. While the new system will probably reduce or alleviate the street flooding, I don't believe that it will have much of an impact on the sanitary sewer problem.

In articles that I posted in November, 2009 and January, 2010,
I described my thoughts on the effectiveness of the Storm Water Master Plan and the steps that should be taken to identify and correct the problems with the sanitary system. These included performing flow monitoring and infiltration inflow analysis. This would help the City identify areas of excessive infiltration and allow the City to take the necessary steps to correct them.

At a recent City Council meeting, Tim Oakley, Director of Public Works and Engineering was asked to describe the sewer work that was occurring along Wolf and Rand Rds. He stated that The MWRD was lining its interceptor sewer to reduce infiltration.

I e-mailed Mr. Oakley, inquiring if this procedure was a possible solution to the problems in our ward. His response:

Email Response from Mr. Tim Oakley

He stated that the infiltration rate in our sanitary system exceeded the base flow rate by a factor of 10! This says it all. There is no doubt in my mind that this is the major cause of the surcharge we experience.

Mr. Oakley also stated that the City has budgeted $125,000 to perform the testing I described in my posts. This is a significant amount. He further detailed the various procedures the City could take to correct the problems when areas of infiltration are identified. In a follow up e-mail Mr. Oakley stated that the consultant contract would be presented to The City Council around the end of March and that the full scope would be defined then.

This is, without a doubt, the most encouraging news I've heard regarding our problems. The City has acknowledged the problem and is taking steps to identify and correct it.

Mayor Moylan has maintained that infrastructure upgrades and repairs should be a priority for this City and I agree. Aging and inadequate infrastructure affects our property values and our ability to attract business.

Some residents may think that, with the recent acceleration of the storm sewer work in our ward, the problem is solved and we won. I would suggest that that work was merely the first step in a long process to correct all the flooding problems. In my article of November 2nd, 2009, I note that the sanitary sewer issues present a potential health problem.

As shown on the City's website, their position on this issue is that the burden should be borne by the property owner by recommending that the homeowner invest in a costly flood control or overhead sanitary system. The cost of a reliable flood control system is around $6000 , not including electrical hook up or landscape restoration. Even then, the system is vulnerable to power outages and the homeowner must further invest in a generator or battery back-up systems. I strongly disagree with this position. I believe the City has a responsibility to ensure that the infrastructure that they provide performs properly. The only way to avoid being connected to the City's sanitary system is to use a septic field or an outhouse, neither of which is legal.
In my article of November 9, 2009, I note the sanitary sewer issues present a potential health problem. This in itself should be a concern to all residents.

As a resident of the 8th Ward, I am very concerned about this issue. As a candidate for Alderman, I would make this one of my highest priorities.
I urge all the residents to stay engaged in this issue until all the flood issues in our ward are resolved.

Rain Rain Go Away!

It's been well over a year now since The No Flood Zone blog was created. A group of concerned 8th Ward residents embarked on a collaborative effort to persuade the Mayor and City Council to accelerate the flood project scheduled for Marshall Drive, a street on which my family has lived for 24 years. Many of my neighbors were affected when excessively heavy rainfalls exceeded the storm sewer capacity, which historically had been about 1.25 inches per hour. In particular, for each of the past four years, there has been at least one significant rainfall, which resulted in street flooding. Not every one of these led to property damage, but the rain events created a great deal of stress for those affected.

It is January 2011, and the long-awaited Marshall Drive project is now complete. A new 36-inch storm sewer was installed, and the old 18-inch line is still intact. In addition, the Willie Road reservoir was created for emergency runoff. These changes provide for significant storm water capacity. The big questions, of course, are whether it will work, how many households will benefit, and whether the sanitary sewer also needs an overhaul. Cordial Drive, which runs into Marshall Drive, has had a history of flooding, but the project did not involve any work on this street. However, due to the interconnectedness of the sewer systems, one would expect some relief for folks who live on Cordial. The only way to find out for sure is to experience another torrential downpour, but I don't think any of us are ready for that!!

While I certainly am glad our storm sewer work has finally been completed, going through this long and epic battle has made me realize the importance of a sound infrastructure, something which is too often neglected, probably due to the significant cost involved. As homeowners, we face a similar dilemma. For example, if you had $20,000 to spend on remodeling, would you rather spend it on beautifying your kitchen, or fixing your plumbing? The City Council has historically struggled with making monetary commitments to infrastructure work and has placed more emphasis on cosmetic improvements. After all, storm sewer work doesn't do much to improve the look of the City of Des Plaines!

Mayor Moylan has made it clear that upgrading the City's infrastructure is a priority. In fact, when the City Council was split on whether to accelerate the Storm Water Master Plan and complete the work on Marshall Drive ahead of schedule, he cast the tiebreaking vote. For years, our alderman, Rosemary Argus, tried to take care of our flooding problems, but former mayors and City Council members did not support her. The current administration is getting the job done, and my message to them is to continue to work collaboratively and take care of the residents of Des Plaines.

In a report to the City Council, I cited several reasons why flood mitigation work was important. Among these reasons was the obligation of a local government to protect its citizens. In many ways, a flood is like a thief that robs you of your property, your health, and your time. The City of Des Plaines needs to remain committed to mitigating flood damage, a problem which has plagued our community for decades. Whenever I tell people where I live, a common response is, "Doesn't it flood there?" There is a stigma on our community, and one way to remove it is for the residents to be vigilant and to hold our government officials accountable for their actions. Many people have just given up out of disgust, but that is not the answer. I am thankful I never quit, although I will admit, I experienced many moments of discouragement and despair. The No Flood Zone was formed because residents decided it was time to take action. The result is that we sent a clear message and got something accomplished.

I am also delighted to learn that one member of our group, Austin Stanton, is going to run for the alderman position vacated by Rosemary Argus. One benefit of getting involved in a local community matter is the satisfaction that comes from working with others toward a common goal. While this blog has focused on one issue - flooding - we recognize that city officials are faced with a host of other problems and challenges. However, solving those problems requires the same strategic approach based on concern, commitment and collaboration. I personally wish Austin well in his honorable pursuit to serve the people of Des Plaines and to take part in accomplishing great things for our community!

A Parade of Dirt and Pipe

There is a lot of dirt and a lot of pipe staged on Marshall Drive near Wille (south of Oakton). So we can now see physical evidence that work has begun on the Storm Sewer improvements in our neighborhood.

Folks are very anxious for these improvements; and with the rain and subsequent flood damage this past July 24th,  there is a renewed sense of urgency.
Perhaps a meeting of 8th Ward residents may be a method for the city to hear from the community much like what is being done on Wednesday, August 18, 6:00 PM for the 
storm sewer improvements on Nelson Lane.


A note to community members reading this blog: Please post comments to this post about the flood damage you experienced this past July 24th and your thoughts about the value of a neighborhood meeting.

Storm Sewer Work on Marshall

See the Des Plaines construction blog. Looks like launch date is tomorrow Aug 12, 2010. Should we have a parade?

Best Laid Plans

As plans were developed for the storm sewer improvements in the Des Plaines community, the work on Marshall Dr. was scheduled for a June 2 2010 start. However, who would have predicted a strike by road construction laborers to hold up not only storm sewer projects, but also others -- including the casino.

Rains, please stay away. And we will need to utilize the race track and river boats to "invest" our money.

June 2010 News

The word from the City of Des Plaines Engineering Dept on a notice letter dated May 24th is that the project will begin on Tuesday, June 2, 2010 with an estimated completion date of Friday, September 3,2010. However, folks on Marshall Dr. will not see any activity until mid-July 2010 as construction will begin on the south end at Wille and Marshall.
The City Contractor is John Neri Construction.

See the City's construction blog post for further details.

Also see the Google Maps tags for this and related project location details
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http://www.desplaines.org/KML/CIP2010ContractA.kml.

City To Expand Sewers (from JOURNALOnline)

Its official! Bids awarded and work to commence. Mayor says all completed by October. Engineering says work should be starting by June's end.
Read more at
http://www.journal-topics.com/dp/10/dp100421.4.html

Spring has sprung and work will be done on Marshall Drive

According to Becka Shipp (City of Des Plaines Public Works and Engineering Department) the storm sewer work on Marshall Drive will begin sometime in July. The kickoff is the bid opening scheduled for May 5. It seems that the Marshall Project will be combined with another main area of work (near Lake Opeka) which will begin in late May. The Marshall portion is scheduled to begin in July with all completion by Sept 2010. Watch for letters about parking, street closures, and other news about the work.

Des Plaines also maintains a blog at http://desplainescipupdates.wordpress.com/ where info will be posted as available. 

Storm Water Master Plan Problem Areas 8&9 status

Seems that there is some news in the form of a Resident Street Notification Letter dated 2/23/2010 about the Marshall part of this project - Summer 2010. However, I am wondering about the Pennsylvania piece of the project?

A response from Mr Duddles has shed some light on the matter:

"Pennsylvania will not have any direct work being done on it for this project. It will benefit though when the new sewer is installed on Marshall by way of that area now not draining to Pennsylvania and to the detention pond. The detention pond that is fed by the drainage from the entire area will now only receive the drainage from east of Marshall. The area west and north of Marshall will now drain directly to Higgins creek thus cutting the drainage area in half in order to provide better relief."

Look for some activity on Marshall this summer.

Stormwater Master Plan reviewed

by Austin Stanton

I have read the Stormwater Master Plan published by Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd dated July 2003 for the City of Des Plaines, IL.

To place our beliefs before the detail below, we believe that the City should strongly consider  revisiting the design standards for the proposed options since the comments below show that the proposed solution may fall short of the necessary requirements and expectations for our area. The City should take into account the results of the questionnaire/survey results that we produced last summer. The proposed solutions were based on virtually no input from our area.

The entire document is 140 pages, and currently is not publicly available in its entirety, so you can look here for the portions of the report relevant to the comments below where important key passages have been noted.

My comments about this report are as follows:

1. It is unclear when The City sent out the Flood Protection Questionnaire. The report implies that it was sent out after the 2001 flood event, but it may have been in 1986. Burke includes a separate table that documents phone calls received by The City during the 2001 event. It is important to note that there were very few respondents in our ward. I have no recollection of receiving the questionnaire, and I have been here since 1995.
2. The Plan is an update to the 1986 Storm Water Master Plan.
3. The proposed solutions are designed to handle the October, 2001 rain event (p 75), which was 3.8 inches of rain in 3-4 hours. This is close to last June’s event, but significantly under the September, 2008 event.
4. The report briefly addresses rear yard flooding (p. ES-3) and provides an estimate, but this issue appears to be outside the scope of this plan.
5. The priority list (p.ES-4) lists our area as the 4th highest priority. The highest priority area is in The Highwood Knolls. They have or had a significantly higher weighted score, by far, than any other area. This can probably be linked to the high level of responses to the questionnaire. Therefore, the lack of responses from our area may have hurt us.
6. On page 28, the report states that the “existing Marshall Drive storm sewer has insufficient capacity to convey tributary October, 2001 historic storm event runoff”.
7. On page 31, it states the same thing for the Pennsylvania Avenue storm sewer. These sewer systems are undersized. This is a critical piece of information.
8. Page 41 states the extent of the October, 2001 event and discusses the methods used to arrive at their recommendations.
9. Pages 73-77 provide a detailed description of how the storm systems in these 2 areas work. There are various alternatives that are discussed and evaluated; some are quite impractical, such as buying Friendship Park and turning it into a detention pond.
10. Alternative 1A solves the problem for Area 8 at the expense of Area 9. Alternative 1B is recommended to be used in conjunction with 1A. However, this is dependent on the existence of “the proposed Wille Rd. storm system”. It is not clear if that system was built. Note that Spaceco is the surveying division of Christopher Burke Engineering, so it should be assumed that the information they provided is accurate. Also, as I suspected, there are many technical difficulties with this option including easements and existing utilities. It is stated that if Alternatives 1A and 1B are done, flood protection for Area 8 is achieved during the October, 2001 event and “acceptable flood levels of 4.1 inches” occur at Pennsylvania and Oakton. This means that any event that exceeds the October, 2001 event would result in flooding exceeding 4.1 inches at Pennsylvania and Oakton.
11. Option 2, which seemed to be the most practical, won’t work due to existing elevations.

However the most disturbing aspect of this report by far, is addressed on Page ES-3. The report addresses the issue of the sanitary system surcharge. It recommends that the burden for this problem be put on the homeowner. I think that it is erroneously assumed that this problem is due to a combined sewer system, which we don’t have in our areas. Again, I believe that the proposed solution for our area will have little or no impact on the issue of the sanitary sewer surcharge. This should become a priority for us.

Going forward, we should determine if the City is going to revisit the design standards for the proposed options. Under the circumstances, the proposed solution may fall short of the necessary requirements for our area and almost certainly fall short of expectations. The City should take into account the results of the questionnaire/survey results that we produced last summer. The proposed solutions were based on virtually no input from our area.

Rear Yard Drainage -- cost sharing?

As we move into a new year, it seems that there will be some discussion about cost sharing mechanisms between residents and the City on the "rear yard drainage" part of the Flood Water Management project in Des Plaines. The topic is an the agenda os a Engineering Committee Meeting, chaired by Alderman Matt Bogusz on January 7 at 6:30 PM at City Hall. Rosemary Argus is also on this Engineering Committee and will attend.

This reporter senses that residents attending this meeting will be most vocal about and costs imposed on them for flood management.

It s a long road from budget to reality

Any city's budget is a major document that needs to be studied and scrutinized. The conversations and comments by Council Members and citizens alike at the well-attended budget meeting on Oct 13, 2009 was proof of that. And this was just one of many throughout the month of October. The culmination is tentatively scheduled for Oct 29th.

It seems that the administration and City Council did hear the pleas of, not only the 8th Ward residents, but also, their city-wide constituencies, about flooding issues throughout the city. So is this a done deal? Not likely. Discussions and comments by Alderman and city engineers are implying that the shovels will not hit the dirt until 2011. So what is the time line and milestones between now and then? Here is what I believe to be the short story:

• Oct 29th - final approval of budget
• What to watch for
1. Was the Stormwater Management Master Plan accelerated to move the start of problem areas 8 and 9 to 2010?
2. Was the revenue to support the acceleration approved at sufficient levels?

• Bidding the work (Survey Request for proposals sent scheduled for completion Dec 2009)
• What to watch for
1. Bid notices in the papers and on the Des Plaines web site.
2. Dates for Bid opening and acceptance.

• Design Phase of Problem areas 8 and 9 (Scheduled for winter - spring 2010)
  
• What to watch for
1. Has design work started by winter of 2010?
2. Is design work completed by Spring of 2010?
3. Activity of engineers and design teams on Marshall and Pennsylvania throughout this time frame.

• The work is beginning on Marshall and Pennsylvania (Fall 2010- Winter 2011)
• What to watch for
1. Notices to residents of traffic inconveniences in the vicinity
   
2. "Julie" markings and flags in the vicinity of the construction
   
3. Appearance of heavy equipment and porta-potties on and near Marshall and Pennsylvania

There is a long road between talking about this type of project and seeing it come to fruition. It would behoove us to continue to ask questions and learn more about how and when Problem areas 8 and 9 of the Stormwater management Master plan will be complete.
Updated 10/23/2009 -- scheduling information (in red); courtesy of Jon Duddles, Asst. Dir. of Public Works and Engineering

October 1 -- 8th Ward Flood Meeting Organized by Alderman Rosemary Argus

Back on July 28, 2009, 8th Ward Councilman Rosemary Argus held a "Flood Meeting" to gather feedback for flooding issues in her ward. She is having a followup meeting as noted below at the Friendship Conservatory on October 1, 2009. Mayor Moylan, Jon Duddles, and Tim Oakley are scheduled to attend.
The text of her flyer follows:

Our first meeting

Residents Present at 8/19 Meeting

Adam Oleander

Ann Brown

Bob Furst

Carol White

Halina Gumulka

Halina Kraszewski

Joanna Sakowicz

Jim Vinci

Issues Discussed:

• Pursuit of litigation against the City of Des Plaines. It was unanimously agreed to pursue a Class Action Lawsuit against the City of Des Plaines. Jim Vinci presented evidence of his attendance at several City Council Meetings, at which he pleaded with the City Council to address our problems. Jim has substantial documentation and an actual video tape of a Council meeting from 2001. The Council members are taking no action. The lawsuit is a step toward holding our public officials accountable for their lack of action. Their decisions are affecting our personal property, our personal lives, and our personal health. Joanna Schwartz has been in contact with an attorney who has asked for further information before he will represent us. Jim Vinci will meet with the attorney at the appropriate time to provide the necessary background material.
• Complete and submit the Freedom of Information Act to the City of Des Plaines. Joanna has made edits based on the group's input and will submit this form to the City.
• Contact Tim Oakley to address specific residential concerns. It was suggested that residents call Tim Oakley, the City's Chief Engineer, and have someone from his department come out and listen to specific concerns. Jim Vinci already did that back in 2001, and that is why Marshall Drive and Pennsylvania are included as Problem Area #12 in the City's Stormwater Master Plan. It became apparent during last night's meeting that the work slated for Marshall and Pennsylvania may not help all of us, so it is important to bring our individual issues to the City.
• Use of Social Media. Bob Furst made the excellent point that we have to use technology to our advantage. Setting up a blogging service to post documents and messages that could ultimately be accessible to other residents in our ward. Bob also suggested use of the Chicago Tribune local website to post ongoing flooding concerns to an even broader audience.
• Status of Flood Survey Information. The flood surveys filled out by residents were secured by Rosemary Argus, but someone needs to process and summarize them. We need a count of flooding problems by type of problem as well as a count of flooding problems by street. Specific survey comments, made by residents, should really be addressed by Rosemary to Mayor Moylan and the City Council.
• Attendance at City Council Budget Meetings. The main budget meeting we are interested in is the one where the City Council discusses the CIP (Capital Improvement Plan). Bob Furst pointed out that we may have to attend several budget meetings in order to insure that we don't miss it. Last year, Rosemary told Jim Vinci when the CIP was going to be discussed, and he attended only that meeting, which was on October 16th. Jim requested that the City Council accelerate the 8th Ward work, but they declined.
• Status of Chicago Tribune Article. The article is now going through editing and should be available soon.
• Problem Area #12 Project. It was unanimously agreed that the Problem Area #12 project, to address Marshall Drive and Pennsylvania Avenue flooding problems, begin now, rather than 2011.
• Letter to Peter Roskam. Jim Vinci is working on a letter to Congressman Peter Roskam and will submit a draft to the group for review. It might make sense to first show the letter to our attorney so that it sends the right message. It is intended that the Des Plaines Mayor, City Council, City Engineer, City Attorney, and Chicago Tribune reporter, be copied on the letter.
• Spokesman Assignment. It was agreed that Jim Vinci be the spokesman for our group because of his initial correspondene with the Tribune reporter, Elizabeth Schiele.
• Contact with Rosemary. Other than what was mentioned above, we agreed that our contact with Rosemary should be very limited right now because, although she has expressed support, she is a representative of the City.
• Ward Representation by Other Ethnic Groups. We agreed that it would be a good idea if people of other ethnic groups joined our group. This would facilitate communication with individuals who really need help, but are unable to understand what is happening or being done to address flooding.