In the wake of multiple tornadoes that have torn through the southwestern suburb, costing an estimated $1 million over the past month, Orland Park’s Village Board voted Monday to accept a grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to reduce flooding at Marley Creek.
The village also approved a local disaster declaration from storms Aug. 11, following in the footsteps of Cook and Will counties and other Southland municipalities.
“Severe thunderstorms and tornado activity impacted the Village of Orland Park, causing power interruptions, roadway hazards, debris, and other conditions affecting the public health, safety, and welfare,” the declaration states.
Mayor Jim Dodge said Monday he hoped the village would be reimbursed for some of the costs incurred during the storms, but he was grateful to be in a better position than some other municipalities that were hit.
“Orland Park is blessed in terms of the staffing that we have, as well as the equipment that we have,” Dodge said. “There’s plenty of other suburbs that … simply aren’t as well prepared, so I’m appreciative of that.”
The village is working to increase storm resilience at two flood-prone areas, Tinley Creek and the Marley Creek Basin. At Tinley Creek, efforts to stabilize the bank and improve water are underway, according to Village Manager George Koczwara.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources provided the village just over $1 million to be spent by June 30, 2029, toward developing a stormwater basin and preservation area near Marley Creek.
The village has slowly acquired previously unincorporated lands and bought the former El Cortez restaurant and bus barn buildings to demolish this year, Koczwara said. He said the abandoned structures are dangerous and unsightly, so getting rid of them to focus on ecological restoration and flood prevention is a “win-win-win.”
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He said the total project, which includes the already completed property purchases and construction of walking trails and the flood basin, should cost about $4 million. The village expects to receive more grant money, Koczwara said, because “we’re taking away something that was commercially developed and reestablishing native plantings.”
Dodge said the village is working hard to stay on top of flood prevention, especially after the latest storms.
“Because there’s more water, we want to stay on top of stormwater management,” Dodge said. “There’s just more water falling in our area, so you have to do these things.”