Flood-prone area in search of a plan

By Bob Susnjara

June 27, 2000 Web posted at: 1:09 PM EDT (1709 GMT)

GURNEE, Illinois (Daily Herald) -- Waterlogged homes, weary residents and carp fighting for their lives as they flop on the pavement become part of the typical scene after the Des Plaines River roars over its banks near downtown Gurnee.

It's a scene that played out a little more than a week ago for the first time since 1986, when flood waters caused more than $34 million in property damage in Gurnee, the Libertyville area and other Des Plaines River neighborhoods in Lake County. Although the village has purchased some homes to remove them from the flood plain, no actual plan exists on what to do for the area just east of Milwaukee and Grand avenues. It's unclear if one will be crafted anytime soon.

"We need a plan," Trustee Ray Damijonaitis said. "What's been done (for home buys) has been done on an ad-hoc basis."

Gurnee did not intend for home buys to be the lone solution for flooding since 1986 because various federal plans for the Des Plaines River have come and gone. Roughly 50 houses and businesses are in the flood-prone district. Emerald Avenue's brick bungalows are believed to date to the 1910s and '20s, while the newest ranch homes along Kilbourne Road were constructed in the 1950s and '60s. Gurnee's Mother Rudd House has occupied the flood zone since 1844. Remarkably, village spokesman Brad Burke said, the historic house never has taken in water.

Debate on whether taxpayers' money should be used to obtain houses in the flood plain is expected at a future Gurnee village board meeting. Some elected officials say Gurnee floods too infrequently to continue buying homes, while others contend it's a good policy if the price is right.

However, a local environmental group does not consider home purchases in flood plains to be the ultimate solution. Gary Mechanic, chairman of the Des Plaines River Watershed Alliance, said removing homes from a flood zone is more of a "Band-Aid" treatment.

"It's fixing the mistakes of the past by getting structures out of there," Mechanic said. He added flooding will continue in Gurnee and across Lake County if drainage ditches and Des Plaines River tributaries continue to be paved with asphalt.

Gurnee has bought seven homes near the Des Plaines River since 1987, Burke said. Mayor Richard Welton said he "would be open" to the idea of buying more houses.

Trustee Tom Chamberlain is among the Gurnee officials who believe the purchase of reasonably-priced homes that come on the market near the Des Plaines makes the most economic sense for the village. Chamberlain said he's against funding construction of a levee, because the village has been told it could cost at least $5 million to pursue that option on its own.

"You have to remember, you're only protecting less than $2 million worth of homes there," Chamberlain said. He envisions a day, possibly 20 years from now, when Gurnee will have bought enough homes to create a greenbelt along the Des Plaines River. He said that greenway could connect to two existing village parks.

On the other side of the bank, Trustee Kristina Kovarik said it might not be prudent for the village to buy several $150,000 homes because it wants to prevent infrequent flooding. Kovarik said the village needs much more information about the flood plain before it commits to buying houses.

"I'm not going to pay market value for something you're going to tear down," Kovarik said.

Damijonaitis said he agrees with Village Administrator James Hayner's idea to seek financial assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for home buys, so Gurnee doesn't have to spend as much of its money.

Other than going after homes, Mechanic contends local governments such as Gurnee's should be more active in using eminent domain powers to forcibly purchase houses in flood plains. He reasoned that government officials never have been hesitant to seize land to build expressways.

"There's a lot of crazy people out there that are pro-private property owners rights," Mechanic said. "The purpose of eminent domain is to protect the greater public good."

At least one business owner on Old Grand Avenue, which was inundated with river water, said he's glad to hear the village wants to create a formal plan on what should be done to possibly stem future flooding. But no matter what happens, Mike Kerrigan of Mike's Bikes said he can accept temporary shutdowns from flooding just like he can when there's too much snow in the winter.

"The area downtown in Gurnee has been great to us," Kerrigan said, "and I don't foresee us leaving."

Various ideas for controlling Des Plaines River flooding have been floated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers since 1986. Just four years ago, the Army Corps said it would construct a Gurnee levee, but that idea has evaporated.

Instead, the latest federal flood-control project planned for parts of Lake County - including Van Patten Woods in Wadsworth and near the tiny village of Old Mill Creek - will not benefit Gurnee. Construction on the Van Patten Woods reservoir is set for 2002, with work on the dam slated to start in 2003 at the North Fork Mill Creek near Old Mill Creek. Gurnee is downstream from those two sites.

"What will the current project do for the folks in the Gurnee area?" asked John Sirles, an Army Corps deputy for project management. "It will bring no noticeable change. The two components in the general vicinity of Gurnee, Van Patten Woods and North Fork Mill Creek ... will have a negligible impact on reducing flooding in the Gurnee area."

As part of the $49 million plan to control upper Des Plaines River flooding in Illinois, the Army Corps computed the cost-benefit ratios for where it intends to build levees, dams and reservoirs. While Van Patten Woods and North Fork Mill Creek won out, Gurnee did not come close to making the cut.

Flood damage to homes, businesses, roads and forest preserves are part of the economic analysis the Army Corps considers to determine if a project is worth the price. The Army Corps said it decided the economic benefits will far outweigh the annual costs to maintain the Van Patten Woods reservoir and North Fork Mill Creek's dam. The Army Corps, however, found the Gurnee area well below the necessary grade to qualify for either a levee or reservoir. Needing to score at least a 1.0 on the cost-benefit ratio scale, the Gurnee area pulled a 0.43 for a reservoir and a 0.03 for a levee, Sirles said.

Sirles said Gurnee can pursue a levee or reservoir, provided it uses its own money and complies with the Army Corps permit process.

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