Uncertainty Affects La Grange Flood Project

LA GRANGE, IL – La Grange on Monday hired an engineer to design a more than 3 million-gallon water storage vault underneath a Lyons Township High School field.

This vault is supposed to handle flooding that converges on Sunset and Elm avenues. This is where water collects from what is believed to be a big part of north La Grange.

The project is estimated to cost $8.9 million. The village has $2 million of that money from the state, but half of it must be spent this year, officials said.

The village also hopes to get federal money for the project. The village indicated it received encouraging signs from the federal government late last year.

But the return of President Donald Trump may have changed things.

"It's unclear whether any grants or money will be awarded," Village President Mark Kuchler told the Village Board on Monday. "We're in that kind of limbo. At one time, we were told we'd hear by mid-January. Obviously, it's February."

Sunset and Elm, where flooding occurs, is a block away from Lyons Township High School's athletic fields.

Over the last couple of years, village and school officials have talked about the project. Under their plan, the village would install the vault under the field, followed by the school's putting in an artificial turf field.

Last week, school board members received an update on the turf field and other proposed projects. The school had hoped to pay for the artificial turf field as part of $25 million in debt-financed projects.

But last year's building renovations cost a lot more than expected, so no money is available for the field, among other projects. Officials have not identified a way to pay for the field.

Superintendent Brian Waterman told school board members that his understanding was that the village was years away from getting all the money.

The Village Board voted for Christopher Burke Engineering to design the vault.