Cook County says 'Hey, where's our aid?'

A bewildered Des Plaines Mayor Tony Arredia started dialing his political contacts Wednesday morning just moments after hearing Cook County had been bypassed for federal disaster relief.

President Bush late Tuesday named Lake, Kane, Will, DeKalb, Grundy and LaSalle counties federal disaster areas as a result of the late August storms and flooding. They now qualify for federal aid, including grants and low-interest loans from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

A month after rolling up his pants to trudge through the flooded Des Plaines River waters, Arredia rolled up his sleeves to question how the county that spent a $16.5 million after the storms somehow failed to be declared a federal disaster area.

Des Plaines alone spent $2.4 million. By comparison, Lake County officials reported spending $393,000.

"I guess I've got to make some calls," Arredia said.

As a result of those calls, Arredia next week will meet with representatives from the offices of Democratic U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Evanston.

There's hope.

FEMA said more counties could be added to the list of disaster areas.

"There's still a review process continuing. There's still a chance that more counties will be designated," FEMA spokeswoman Sandy Jasmund said.

She could give no timeline Wednesday for when a final decision would be made.

In the storms' wake, FEMA representatives collected damage estimates and knocked on doors to speak with residents to help make the designation.

FEMA will work with the Illinois Emergency Management Agency as it continues the review process.

On Wednesday, that agency held a conference call with officials from Cook, McHenry and DuPage counties to assure them it would do more to bolster their case for federal aid.

"We're very happy that we got the counties we did," said Patti Thompson, a spokeswoman for the state agency. "We're going to work very hard for the counties that didn't get the designation. … They have not denied the other counties."

Durbin in a video posted on his Web site urged the Bush administration to name the three counties as disaster areas to help residents and businesses.

Getting named a federal disaster area means the difference between being reimbursed for up to 75 percent of storm-related expenses or being forced to look elsewhere to cover the expenses.

Des Plaines used its financial reserves to cover the bills for tree removal and wood chipping, among other expenses. The bills are still trickling into city hall a month later.

Hoffman Estates officials estimate spending about $1 million after the storms. Mount Prospect spent $750,000, while Schaumburg spent about $200,000 on storm cleanup.

Like Arredia, Mount Prospect Mayor Irvana Wilks felt blindsided by the news that Cook County communities cannot yet qualify for money from FEMA.

"I guess what it really shows you is we all have to take care of ourselves. We have to have a budget that takes care of our home community," Wilks said.

Hoffman Estates Mayor William McLeod also plans to lobby state senators and state representatives to ensure his village gets help.

"Obviously, there's a glitch in the system somewhere if they didn't feel that this was up to the disaster standards that they set," McLeod said.

Not every suburban town felt snubbed.

Arlington Heights spent $250,000 on storm cleanup, yet never expected to be declared a disaster area, Village Manager Bill Dixon said.