Friends of the Chicago River honored two projects that the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) partnered on to restore local waterways and capture stormwater through a green infrastructure installation in Calumet Park.

The Chicago Waterways Restoration Framework Plan was awarded a Silver Ribbon Award, and the Winchester Avenue Green Infrastructure and Flood Reduction Project was recognized with a Green Ribbon Award at Friends’ annual Big Fish Ball on May 29 at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk hotel overlooking the Chicago River.

“Congratulations to our partners for their commitment to improving our waterways and mitigating flooding through green infrastructure solutions,” said MWRD President Kari K. Steele. “We appreciate this recognition from Friends of the Chicago River and look forward to the long-term impact these projects will have on the surrounding communities.”

The Chicago Waterways Restoration Framework Plan, led by the Chicago River Ecology and Governance Task Force, Chicago Department of Planning and Development and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) supports and integrates ongoing and future ecological rehabilitation and community and industrial initiatives that are being conducted citywide by citizens, businesses, non-governmental organizations, and local, state and federal partners. The MWRD, the Forest Preserves of Cook County, and the Chicago Park District joined the partnership to help develop a plan that offered a forum for riverfront communities to propose and review concepts and plans for public access and engagement with the water; opportunities to propose river system visions and projects that benefit all communities, people, and nature; and an invitation to engage other communities without direct access to the river through other water-related issues, such as wetlands, stormwater management and climate-change related impacts. 

The plan was divided into five regions that covered: (1) the Calumet River area, (2) the South Branch of the Chicago River, (3) the main stem of the Chicago River near downtown, (4) the North Branch of the Chicago River (Chicago Avenue to Carmen Avenue), and (5) the North Shore Channel and North Branch of the Chicago River from Carmen to the city limits at Bunker Hill and Devon Avenue. In total, 82 sites were identified by the USACE’s Planning Assistance to States (PAS) program as potential opportunities for habitat restoration, public recreation, and stormwater management activities within the Chicago and Calumet river systems. 

“Friends of the Chicago River launched the Blue Ribbon Awards in order to recognize the organizations and agencies at the forefront of river sensitive design,” said Margaret Frisbie, Friends’ executive director. “Now more than ever it is important to invest in nature, natural solutions, and our communities through projects such as the Winchester Avenue Green Infrastructure and Flood Reduction Project and by identifying opportunities as the Chicago Waterways Restoration Plan does that will build resiliency and ecological health.”

In Calumet Park, the MWRD contributed $360,000 toward the construction of a roadside bioswale and permeable pavers in the parking lane of Winchester Avenue, as part of a larger $3.4 million disaster relief project. The new street surface and roadside will help mitigate flooding in the area between 124th and 127th streets and between Lincoln and Winchester avenues. The project will also improve area water quality by reducing the current load to the combined sewer system that can be overwhelmed with sanitary sewage and stormwater sharing the same pipes during heavy rains. The award honored project partners, including the Village of Calumet Park, Antero Group, Cook County, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Robinson Engineering, Greenprint Partners, Center for Neighborhood Technology and the MWRD. 

The Winchester Avenue Green Infrastructure Project was selected by the MWRD in its annual call for projects through the MWRD Green Infrastructure Partnership Program. The permeable surface area will provide an estimated 198,983 gallons of stormwater storage in addition to educating local residents on the benefits of green infrastructure.

“By committing to green infrastructure, we can build resilience and improve area water quality by reducing the load on local sewer systems,” said MWRD Vice President Patricia Theresa Flynn. “We thank Friends of the Chicago River for recognizing these important projects that protect our water environment and bring us closer to our thriving waterways.”