Darien Residents Reeling From Flooding Plead For Action

DARIEN, IL – Scott Dlhy bought his house in Darien in March. His first Fourth of July was anything but fun.

Dlhy, who lives in the 7300 block of Darien Lane, was among the residents whose homes flooded during the holiday.

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"Now our garage, basement and front entrance are destroyed," Dlhy told Darien aldermen on Monday. "So it's been kind of a rough start to living in Darien for me."

He reported two feet of water in the basement and water coming through the front entrance.

That means the family had to get a new dryer, washer and water heater. The furnace needed to be fixed.

"We're already well beyond what insurance covered," he said.

He suspects the water in the basement came from a sewer backup during the storm. That can occur when the sewage system fills up with stormwater.

He also said the water was above ground. And the situation worsened when trucks drove through the water. That included a fire truck, Dlhy said.

"We wouldn't have had the water come in the front door had those trucks not been driving down the street," Dlhy said. "So that's an issue I'm concerned about."

His next-door neighbor, Karl Kulpinski, agreed.

"I feel we need a much better response in putting up the barricades," Kulpinski said. "There are cars, trucks, whatever, that like to go flying through the water, create waves that just run all the way to the house."

Darien resident Karl Kulpinski on Monday suggests the city put barricades on streets during flooding. Vehicles caused waves, worsening the problem, he said. Watching on are aldermen Ted Schauer (left) and Ralph Stompanato (David Giuliani/Patch)

After the July 4 storm, Darien hired an engineer to study the stormwater problem in specific areas, with a report expected in a month and a half. They included Darien and the neighboring Jewel store, the 8600 block of Clifford Drive, the 400 block of 71st Street, and parts of Gail Avenue, according to the city.

At Monday's City Council meeting, aldermen voted to take part in a pilot overhead sewer system program with DuPage County. This would aim to stop sewage systems from backing up during storms.

Under the initiative, the city would chip in $5,000 for residents' projects, with the county paying the rest. A system costing up to $12,000 would cost a resident nothing, officials said. The resident would need to have proof of a previous backup.

The city estimated that such backups affected 35 homes during the July 4 storm.

Another concern with recent flooding is ComEd's power outages, putting sump pumps out of commission, among other things.

Residents pleaded with the city to make the case to the utility to act quickly. Officials said they were in contact with ComEd.

Steve Kotwica, who lives in the 400 block of 71st Street, said 16 homes on his street and Maple Avenue were without power for 4½ days last week.

At first, CoEd blamed the storm, but then it pointed the finger at Metronet, which has installed fiber optic cable in Darien, Kotwica said.

"What I'm looking for is more communication between the city and these companies that work for us," Kotwica said. "This is costing residents a lot of money... We had to go out and buy generators. We lost food."

This was the second council meeting in which aldermen heard flooding concerns and pleas for action.

The effects of the storms in towns such as Hinsdale, Western Springs, La Grange and Burr Ridge weren't quite as severe. That hasn't been the case in other storms.

In summer 2021, residents in La Grange and Western Springs spoke out against their local officials after flooding.