More flood-prevention projects planned for Wheeling

More projects are being added to a stormwater management plan that helped resolve significant flooding issues in Wheeling.

New sewers and other improvements are proposed for five flood-prone areas. The work would be done between 2028 and 2031 and is expected to cost about $8.5 million.

The planned projects together represent “another investment in the long-term health of our community,” Village Manager Jon Sfondilis said.

“It is another step in making sure that the leaders who come after us inherit a plan, not a backlog,” Sfondilis said before village staffers publicly unveiled the plan last week.

The original stormwater master plan was approved in 2015. With a price tag of about $9 million, it consisted of eight projects designed to relieve significant, ongoing flooding problems.

The projects included constructing a stormwater basin near Mark Twain Elementary School in the South Dunhurst neighborhood, sewer installations throughout town and assorted drainage improvements.

The proposed, five-year addition to the plan consists of five projects.

First up in 2028 would be the reconstruction of a two-mile stretch of Wheeling Road between Dundee and Palatine roads. Once the road is rebuilt, it’ll be slightly higher than it is now to prevent flooding after a rainstorm. A culvert near Town Street would be improved as part of this work, too. The total cost should be about $1.5 million.

In 2029, crews would try to improve backyard drainage at homes in the Orchard Lake subdivision, which is south of Hintz Road and west of Elmhurst Road, by installing sewer inlets and improving grading. That should cost about $1 million.

That same year, new sewers would be installed near First Street and Deborah Lane. That could cost about $266,000.

In 2030, larger sewers would be installed in the West Meadowbrook subdivision, which is west of Wolf Road and south of Heritage Park, for about $3.1 million.

Finally, in 2031, sewer pipes that run along Jackson Drive north of Hintz Road and cut east to Schoenbeck Road would be realigned because drain tiles in that residential neighborhood are aging and will fail, officials said. That work could cost more than $2.6 million.

These projects were selected based on a cost-benefit analysis and other factors, Public Works Director Dan Kaup said. The work will be funded with cash from Wheeling’s stormwater utility fee, he said, but officials also will apply for grants.

The board is expected to approve the plan when it meets Monday, Aug. 3.

Trustee Ray Lang was among those who praised the 2015 plan and the new proposals.

“This has made a huge difference in our town, from back in the day where there was water everywhere,” Lang said.