After more than an hour of often impassioned public comment, board member statements and a final plea from Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson, the District 161 Board of Education voted Monday, April 8, to approve an easement that will enable the creation of a detention basin near Heather Hill School.
The basin will be a temporary water storage structure, part of a proposed system to relieve flooding in downtown Flossmoor and in the Berry Lane neighborhood.
the border of a proposed storm water detention basin further from
Heather Hill School in response to parents’ concerns about safety.
(Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
Nelson said the project, which has been under development since 2020, uses the most viable option for flood relief. She said if the easement was not approved, the village would have to rework the plan and would risk losing millions of dollars in committed grant funds, putting a solution years away.
While several people spoke in favor of the project, and Nelson provided the board with two written comments from residents who support the project, the majority of residents who spoke at the meeting were strongly opposed to placing the basin near the school.
Residents cited loss of open land for children to play and the potential harm to property values, but the most common concern expressed was for children’s safety.
The board, too, was divided on the issue. The final vote was 4 to 3.
A more detailed report will follow.