Finished project a boon to residents

Stormwater work takes portion of Crestwood out of flood zone

The recent completion of a flood-control project in Crestwood is expected to save dozens of property owners from needing costly insurance to protect against flood damage.

Village officials and officials with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District took part recently in a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the work, which focused on improving stormwater drainage in the area of 135th Street and Central Avenue.

The District said its portion of the work cost $7.7 million, but Crestwood made other improvements on its own, pushing the dollar value of the project to more than $9 million. The District said the project was completed ahead of schedule.

Mayor Ken Klein said that planning for it had started about eight years ago, and nearly 90 homes and businesses will no longer be part of a flood zone, meaning they won’t have to carry insurance against flood damage, according to the village.

“I extend my gratitude to everyone who contributed to the realization of this tremendous project,” District President Kari Steele said at the ceremony marking the project’s completion. “Thank you to the residents of Crestwood for your input going back to our Detailed Watershed Plan for the Cal-Sag Channel Watershed in 2014.”

With the increasing prevalence of significant downpours, flooding has become of greater concern in the area of 135th Street and Central Avenue, where some 200 homes are routinely affected, according to Klein.

Work got underway in the summer of 2022 and included installing a 6-foot-diameter storm sewer under 135th Street, from