Flossmoor Awaits Federal Release of $384,000 for Flood Project

The federal government is holding $384,000 earmarked for a crucial Flossmoor infrastructure project, meant to tackle local flooding. This funding has inexplicably been on hold since November, says Mayor Michelle Nelson.

Funding Delays

Flossmoor was approved for a grant by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete the fourth phase of a multiyear project addressing flooding issues at the downtown Flossmoor Road viaduct, according to Nelson. Comprehensive bid documents and design drawings were ready.

The project was ready to go out to bid. We had paid our $384,000 share at the end of October, and a few days later in early November, we received an email from the Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Department that our project was put on an administrative hold.

Stormwater Management

The objective is to divert stormwater from downtown to a detention basin at Heather Hill Elementary School. Despite efforts to seek updates, calls for further information have gone unanswered, Nelson notes. She contacted Illinois’ U.S. senators and U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, but no progress was made.

We are in limbo. We haven’t been told no. They have been holding on to $384,000 of our money for nine, almost nine months now, which is a significant amount of money for a small municipality.

Recent Flooding Incidents

Flossmoor’s downtown experienced floods over the Fourth of July weekend, impacting the area and filling the Thornton Composite Reservoir. Local businesses suffered damage, and several vehicles were trapped in the viaduct.

Over the Fourth of July weekend, several of our businesses sustained some damage from the flooding that was present in downtown Flossmoor.

During recent storms, multiple cars got stuck, with one occupant requiring rescue operations as water inundated the vehicle.

Water actually got into their car and was almost all the way up to the ceiling. We had other cars get stuck, and they had to be pushed out. It’s really a life/safety issue.

Project Progress and Challenges

The larger project, including the Heather Hill detention basin and an improved storm sewer system, has been ongoing since 2020. The latest phase involved installing a large-scale storm sewer on Lawrence Crescent, completed in October 2025, right before the hold on funding was announced.

For decades, flooding has troubled downtown Flossmoor. The recurrent closure of viaducts due to flooding hampers emergency service response times.

Numerous times a year, our viaduct is shut down due to excessive flooding, and that means emergency vehicles can’t get through. That adds a significant amount of time, response time when folks are dealing with emergencies.

Seeking Alternative Funding

Nelson expresses frustration over the lack of federal response and considers filling the financial gap with state funding, though this might hinder other planned projects.

That impacts other projects. There are other flood mitigation projects down the line that residents are depending on us to figure out a way how to make them happen, and we were hoping to use state money to do that. And we might have to use state money to do this project, instead.

Nelson calls for prompt action to honor commitments and get the project back on track. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has not commented on the situation.