Project To Fix Oft-Flooded Flossmoor Viaduct Underway

FLOSSMOOR, IL — Village officials in Flossmoor have agreed to spend as much as $40,000 on the engineering portion of a project that could ease the flooding that often occurs under and near the Flossmoor Road viaduct in downtown Flossmoor.

The money spent in the agreement with Baxter & Woodman Engineers of Crystal Lake to create a "preliminary design" for the project will come from their REBUILD Illinois bond funds, which a village memo described as bonds through the State of Illinois 2019 capital bill "to be used for transportation-related construction projects" and managed by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Village officials were not available Monday for more information on the specific plans regarding the Flossmoor Road viaduct.

The engineering phase of the project will determine its scope. "Upstream drainage" from Heather Hill and part of Old Flossmoor will be studied, the village said.

Designs should be set by August, the village memo said. With grant funding, construction could start as early as 2021.

"This flooding issue has been going on for decades, and has only become worse with the increase in rainfall that our region has been experiencing," the village memo states.

When complete, the village said the improvements will alleviate flooding from both upstream areas of the viaduct including Heather Hill and Douglas Avenue, and downstream like the Braueburn/Brassie area.