Study: Park Ridge Area Flood Claims Topped $11 Million From 2007-2011

Park Ridge area residents filed more than $11 million in flood damage claims between 2007 and 2011, according to a study by the nonprofit Center for Neighborhood Technology.

The study, which is attached to this post, examined insurance claims filed in the 60068 ZIP code and also garnered information from an online survey.

The study found that 2,062 claims were filed within the Park Ridge 60068 ZIP code, the equivalent of about 1 in 6 residential properties. The average claim was for $5,584.

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The study did not include any claims from the April flooding in Park Ridge. The flooding was so extensive that Cook County was one of several declared a federal disaster area.

"People who experience flooding in their basement view it as their individual problem," said Harriet Festing, water program director at CNT. "This study shows how flooding is extensive and that it is a collective problem. Ninety-six percent of ZIP codes in Cook County had some flooding claims."

"It's a community problem and one that deserves a strategic solution," she added.

The study points out only 19 communities out of 133 examined participated in the FEMA Community rating system which is designed to help citizens prevent or reduce flood losses.

Festing said that communities sometimes look at the upfront costs of participating in such a program and not think about the costs that can be mitigated later on.

The study does offer some potential solutions to flooding. CNT's "Wetrofit" program, for example, attempts to address flooding on a neighborhood by neighborhood basis.