Wheaton's Flood Study Website

Monday's City Council Meeting is a planning session. One of the topics will be the Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study. This study is a partial one. There are seventeen flood prone areas in Wheaton (according to the documents) and it will require two years to complete all studies. According to the engineering consultant "The study also went one step further in comparison to the two previous studies (Cherry Street & Williston Basin) and also provided a mitigation alternative analysis." A major problem will be determination of how to fund any improvements. Knowing what to do is only a part of the problem. Determining a source of funding is also a major hurdle.

Anyone who has kept current with the dire financial straits of Illinois should be aware that the State has reduced funding to municipalities several times in recent years. This represents many millions of dollars of funding which the City of Wheaton must now make up from other sources, including resident taxes.

The engineering department has put flood study documents on the City's website. Here is the website information and links to the pdf documents. There are two documents:

1. Summary.
2. Complete Study.

"Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study

On April 18, 2013, a major storm event occurred in the City of Wheaton. Many areas throughout the city were flooded, including the flood-prone area Brentwood Lane east of Briarcliffe Boulevard. During the storm, the system of lakes north of Brentwood Lane all filled to capacity. Then, flood waters poured over the southern berm of Lake Four, flooding a large residential area, disrupting residents' lives, and causing property damage and loss.

The flooding that occurred is not an isolated incidence. Based on the City’s records and best available information, the berm has overtopped seven times in the last 45 years. In response to the flooding and in conjunction with Strategic Goal 3D, the City Council approved the Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study to analyze and document the flooding conditions of this flood-prone area as well as propose possible mitigation options.

Flood Study Summary

The Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study was finalized in March 2015 and has been summarized in the following memorandum:

Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study Memorandum (pdf)

Complete Flood Study

The complete Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study is also available:

Briarcliffe Lakes System Flood Study (pdf)"

That's all, folks!