Who’s looking out for Warrenville citizens?

Three years ago this month property owners along the West Branch of the DuPage River upstream of Fawell Dam experienced horrific flooding. Since then I’ve battled with Warrenville as well as DuPage County to remove the dam. No government official will consider this alternative. Why? I’m told Naperville residents have a legal right to its protection. Naperville experienced minimal flooding in September 2008 as well as in July 2010, whereas communities upstream of the dam were devastated by flood waters.

County officials steadfastly maintain the dam has no impact on any property upstream of I-88. According to a recent gate operation study of Fawell Dam conducted by Warrenville, the operation of the dam’s gates impacts Warrenville by as much as nine inches in heavy rain events. But the gates are only one-fortieth of the upstream surface of the dam. When the gates are closed, as they were during the September 2008 and July 2010 storms, the entire upstream surface of the dam must also impact upstream flooding. But the county refuses to conduct a no-dam study, saying it can’t legally remove the dam.

Furthermore, engineering consultants hired by Warrenville completed the gate operation study in December 2010, but it took the city eight more months to present these findings to the public. Their presentation in August was two weeks after the one-year anniversary of the July 2010 flood. The statute of limitations to file a lawsuit of this type is one year. I believe the eight-month delay was a deliberate attempt to thwart property owners from seeking legal justice for flooding caused by the dam.

Government is correct to protect the residents of Naperville. But it’s also their responsibility to equally protect the rights of residents upstream of the dam. Who is watching out for those property owners? Certainly not Warrenville or DuPage County.

Michael Hoffmann

Warrenville