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We are interested in buying a longterm home in Elmhurst but are concerned about all the flooding issues. It seems like the city has several projects under construction to mitigate this problem, but is this enough? Not being too familiar with the micro-neighborhoods inside Elmhurst, I was hoping for advice. Are there specific areas known to be flood risks? Which neighborhoods (maybe broken down by elementary school districts) should be avoided and which ones should be targeted for home buying?
Go to You Tube, do a search called "Elmhurst, IL flooding" and there are videos made by people driving thru the various areas. Make sure you put in Elmhurst, IL because otherwise you will see Elmhurst, NY. I could link some but you could easily just do that.. Enjoy!
We are interested in buying a longterm home in Elmhurst but are concerned about all the flooding issues. It seems like the city has several projects under construction to mitigate this problem, but is this enough? Not being too familiar with the micro-neighborhoods inside Elmhurst, I was hoping for advice. Are there specific areas known to be flood risks? Which neighborhoods (maybe broken down by elementary school districts) should be avoided and which ones should be targeted for home buying?
Thank you for any tips.
Such projects can only go so far, unfortunately. Even inside a good neighborhood with sanitary/sewer/storm updates, a house can easily flood like crazy. Entire basements, etc. This is why you hire a very reputable inspector (or sometimes, even a drainage firm) to evaluate the individual property. Hire the mold inspector who will arrive with testing equipment to evaluate whether or not the basement gets excess moisture or has active issues. That's the only way to truly get it right, but not w/o errors later on since it's mother nature we are talking about.
For individual properties when 'window shopping' look at how the property (and each surrounding property) is graded. After a heavy rain what remaining water do you see ponding around the house/yard, especially a day after? Outflows from gutters you see from the street should all be going away from foundations, etc.
Contrary to suggestions above, the relative risks are VERY WELL EXPLAINED by things like the highly detailed flood plain maps availble through both the City of Elmhurst and the DuPage Co. stormwater management departments. The efforts of both to mitigate regional issues is EXTENSIVE and mostly quite effective.
Of course those efforts have included disconnecting illegal cross ties of sump discharges into the sanitary sewage system, confirmation of adherence to local on-site detention, careful monitoring of outflows from O'Hare and a rather comprehensive approach to everything from roadway widening to expansions of parking with permeable paving.
Many homeowners in the higher risk areas have made signficant efforts to isolate their home from the bad behavior of neighbors -- that include simple or complex anti-backflow systems for sanitary sewers, multiple sump pits / pumps / backup pumps, extended discharges, auxiliary generators, on-site cisterns, and subsurface improvements.
The low risk areas generally are a bit higher, often have more open areas for temporary detention, and exhibit topography that makes overland flooding a non-issue.
Bottomline: anyone that does their homework can be quite confident that their home in Elmhurst is more protected from any rain / snow related flooding than other towns that have not focused on such things.
One thing to be aware of which may have nothing to do with flood plains. I know in Villa Park which is very close to elmhurst the old trees grow into the sewer lines and clog them. I know someone now who has a big tree on the parkway clogging their sewers causes flooding everytime there's a heavy rain. City won't do anything about it.
Contrary to suggestions above, the relative risks are VERY WELL EXPLAINED by things like the highly detailed flood plain maps availble through both the City of Elmhurst and the DuPage Co. stormwater management departments. The efforts of both to mitigate regional issues is EXTENSIVE and mostly quite effective.
Of course those efforts have included disconnecting illegal cross ties of sump discharges into the sanitary sewage system, confirmation of adherence to local on-site detention, careful monitoring of outflows from O'Hare and a rather comprehensive approach to everything from roadway widening to expansions of parking with permeable paving.
Many homeowners in the higher risk areas have made signficant efforts to isolate their home from the bad behavior of neighbors -- that include simple or complex anti-backflow systems for sanitary sewers, multiple sump pits / pumps / backup pumps, extended discharges, auxiliary generators, on-site cisterns, and subsurface improvements.
The low risk areas generally are a bit higher, often have more open areas for temporary detention, and exhibit topography that makes overland flooding a non-issue.
Bottomline: anyone that does their homework can be quite confident that their home in Elmhurst is more protected from any rain / snow related flooding than other towns that have not focused on such things.
I was hoping someone could enlighten me on which neighborhoods are specifically "high risk" areas and "low risk" areas. I have tried to research and I admit I am having trouble figuring it out, reading topography maps, etc. I was hoping someone personally familiar with the town could share specifics.
Contrary to suggestions above, the relative risks are VERY WELL EXPLAINED by things like the highly detailed flood plain maps availble through both the City of Elmhurst and the DuPage Co. stormwater management departments. The efforts of both to mitigate regional issues is EXTENSIVE and mostly quite effective.
Of course those efforts have included disconnecting illegal cross ties of sump discharges into the sanitary sewage system, confirmation of adherence to local on-site detention, careful monitoring of outflows from O'Hare and a rather comprehensive approach to everything from roadway widening to expansions of parking with permeable paving.
Many homeowners in the higher risk areas have made signficant efforts to isolate their home from the bad behavior of neighbors -- that include simple or complex anti-backflow systems for sanitary sewers, multiple sump pits / pumps / backup pumps, extended discharges, auxiliary generators, on-site cisterns, and subsurface improvements.
The low risk areas generally are a bit higher, often have more open areas for temporary detention, and exhibit topography that makes overland flooding a non-issue.
Bottomline: anyone that does their homework can be quite confident that their home in Elmhurst is more protected from any rain / snow related flooding than other towns that have not focused on such things.
Chet, sometimes I am not certain if you actually read what you post, or if you live in Chicago (where such flooding is in many places and properties).
Contrary to what you write above, there's nothing guaranteed regarding flooding with individual properties (meaning, water entering basements), even in areas seemingly on slightly higher elevation based on topographical data.
To be clear, there is NOTHING that can 100% guarantee against flooding or frankly other "act of nature" damage to one's home. I did not say that in post and if anyone got that impression it must because they have issues with rather basic communication. Because I have seen homes that are in the middle of an utterly treeless subdivision sustain significant damage from tree limbs blown from hundreds of yards away during "microbursts" and full-on tornadoes, fires that spread through neighbors wood mulch when a careless "turkey fryer" destroys not the owner's deck but that of innocent adjacent property owners, and yes even "lightning striking twice" to destroy not only a large tree but several years later the much smaller replacement I would never advise any home shopper to ignore any potential risk.
That said, when folks make statements that are not supported by the facts that show Elmhurst is far and away the best prepared town in the whole region when it comes to stormwater it cause some consternation. The City of Elmhurst runs an entire website devoted to such issues, separate from their other municipal sites -- Elmhurst Stormwater Management | Official Website Among things on that site are detailed reports that show which areas have been at greater risk, when projects have been completed and how future projects will mitigate issues.
If the OP wishes more information than what is presented on that site I would also direct them to contact the DuPage County Board Member from Elmhurst that serves on the County Stormwater Committee, the depth of their knowledge is superb and as a resident of Elmhurst Mr. Fichtner well understands the difficult balance that is necessary in the face of alarmists -- DuPage County IL Official Website - County Board Member District 1 - Paul Fichtner
There is no harm in having a well qualified home inspector comment on the evidence of what sorts of stormwater issues a home may have experienced, but I have seen too many unqualified people offer advice that has no basis in the current conditions of a site. The extensive coverage that local media give to stormwater issues is similarly over hyped. Chicago is not Baton Rouge. IF some yahoo manages to float their kayak to end up on the "action news storm team emergency coverage" that does not mean they required helicopter rescue, odds are they walked the kayak from their garage or Subaru roof rack!
The greatest flooding threat that Elmhurst faces is directly traceable to the massive amount of paving that Chicago has used to expand O'Hare. While all of us understand the need to keep ORD a premier airport in the nation's flight system, I have friends who are professional architects that laugh about ORDs Air Traffic Control Tower being "LEED Silver" while literally millions of gallons of water sluice their way through Bensenville, Elmhurst, and other downstream communities -- O'Hare North ATCT | U.S. Green Building Council I similarly chuckle when friends tell me to visit the Bensenville stormwater page where there is no mention of the deluge that town deals with, only the suggestion to "use a rain barrel" -- Bensenville, IL - Official Website - Stormwater Management
While you provide some good info below, you and I post a bit differently. I tend to stick to the basics and you often provide a lot of extraneous info that is frequently blatantly obvious and the posters do not really need to comprehend things
That said, in the context of what I mentioned regarding obtaining an inspection, it should be assumed that anyone hiring an inspector (etc.) is performing adequate due diligence as to its quality. They clearly are not all the same.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chet everett
To be clear, there is NOTHING that can 100% guarantee against flooding or frankly other "act of nature" damage to one's home. I did not say that in post and if anyone got that impression it must because they have issues with rather basic communication. Because I have seen homes that are in the middle of an utterly treeless subdivision sustain significant damage from tree limbs blown from hundreds of yards away during "microbursts" and full-on tornadoes, fires that spread through neighbors wood mulch when a careless "turkey fryer" destroys not the owner's deck but that of innocent adjacent property owners, and yes even "lightning striking twice" to destroy not only a large tree but several years later the much smaller replacement I would never advise any home shopper to ignore any potential risk.
That said, when folks make statements that are not supported by the facts that show Elmhurst is far and away the best prepared town in the whole region when it comes to stormwater it cause some consternation. The City of Elmhurst runs an entire website devoted to such issues, separate from their other municipal sites -- Elmhurst Stormwater Management | Official Website Among things on that site are detailed reports that show which areas have been at greater risk, when projects have been completed and how future projects will mitigate issues.
If the OP wishes more information than what is presented on that site I would also direct them to contact the DuPage County Board Member from Elmhurst that serves on the County Stormwater Committee, the depth of their knowledge is superb and as a resident of Elmhurst Mr. Fichtner well understands the difficult balance that is necessary in the face of alarmists -- DuPage County IL Official Website - County Board Member District 1 - Paul Fichtner
There is no harm in having a well qualified home inspector comment on the evidence of what sorts of stormwater issues a home may have experienced, but I have seen too many unqualified people offer advice that has no basis in the current conditions of a site. The extensive coverage that local media give to stormwater issues is similarly over hyped. Chicago is not Baton Rouge. IF some yahoo manages to float their kayak to end up on the "action news storm team emergency coverage" that does not mean they required helicopter rescue, odds are they walked the kayak from their garage or Subaru roof rack!
The greatest flooding threat that Elmhurst faces is directly traceable to the massive amount of paving that Chicago has used to expand O'Hare. While all of us understand the need to keep ORD a premier airport in the nation's flight system, I have friends who are professional architects that laugh about ORDs Air Traffic Control Tower being "LEED Silver" while literally millions of gallons of water sluice their way through Bensenville, Elmhurst, and other downstream communities -- O'Hare North ATCT | U.S. Green Building Council I similarly chuckle when friends tell me to visit the Bensenville stormwater page where there is no mention of the deluge that town deals with, only the suggestion to "use a rain barrel" -- Bensenville, IL - Official Website - Stormwater Management
While you provide some good info below, you and I post a bit differently. I tend to stick to the basics and you often provide a lot of extraneous info that is frequently blatantly obvious and the posters do not really need to comprehend things
That said, in the context of what I mentioned regarding obtaining an inspection, it should be assumed that anyone hiring an inspector (etc.) is performing adequate due diligence as to its quality. They clearly are not all the same.
I too agree that I "stick to the basics". While you believe that much of what I link to is "blatantly obvious" my experience helping both buyers and sellers find out information about potential places to lives has shown me that even otherwise intelligent people are often mired in psychology that they do not understand -- there are strong emotions that reflect biases that are reinforced in subtle ways by those that may be trying 'to help'. I have been present while many "qualified' home inspectors whistled and hooted while poking at something that might be evidence of some massive cover-up or merely a spot of fresh paint to repair a scratch made by folks moving in a hurry. One need not have a PhD in Psychology or Behavior Finance to understand that the stresses associated with making a large financial decision sets both buyers and sellers on edge.
Anyone that asks about things that may have been found with a simple query to the search engines almost certainly appreciates the more complete context that comes from those with more complete experience. Getting to the level of understanding that enable one to discern whether a "home inspector" is expressing concerns that should be "deal killers", points worth re-opening negotiation, or merely info to file away as not particularly pressing is something that good, experienced buyer's agents should assist with all their clients.
Finally, the context of why it makes sense to rely on the extensive information that the City of Elmhurst makes available is precisely because there is so much misinformation washing around the internets -- of the more than 40,000 that make their home in Elmhurst I would be shocked if even so many as 1% ever had issues with stormwater so severe as to require not staying in their home. The hype that some folks attache to these matters ignores such realities. There are certainly some folks that have loudly made their plight known, and the City of Elmhurst has responded in a mostly positive manner.
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Flooding (really, gravity) doesn't work like that
