WHO: Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) President Kari K. Steele, Board of Commissioners and staff, Village of Robbins Mayor Darren E. Bryant and the Robbins Board of Trustees, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Interim IEPA Director James Jennings, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and other local partners and residents.

WHAT: The celebration of the completion of the first phase of the Robbins Heritage Park and Midlothian Creek Restoration Project and kickoff of the second and final phase of work to help address overbank flooding through a new stormwater park and pond, along with improvements to Midlothian Creek.

WHERE: The event will take place near the intersection of 135th Street and Woodlawn Avenue with additional parking at 135th Street and South Claire Boulevard in Robbins.

 WHEN:  Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, 11 a.m.

The MWRD and project partners will celebrate the progress made on the Robbins Heritage Park and Midlothian Creek Restoration Project. The $30 million project will remove approximately 140 acres from the flood plain, protect 92 structures and remove more than 1,300 parcels from the 100-year flood plain. As a result of planning workshops, public input and MWRD engineering, these stormwater management improvements have the potential to create recreational and economic development opportunities to strengthen and revitalize the community. 

The special event marks the milestone of a recently completed overflow channel and trail space that connects Robbins to the Cal-Sag Channel and mitigates flooding. The second phase of work will include critical improvements to the existing Midlothian Creek, while also connecting the new diversion channel to the stormwater pond south of 135th Street east of Kedzie Avenue. To the west of Kedzie, between 137th and 139th streets, the MWRD will construct rain gardens and vegetated swales to absorb more stormwater. The project aims to significantly increase the capacity of the drainage system in Robbins.

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin is commended for his leadership to secure reimbursement from the US Army Corps of Engineers for the MWRD work at Thornton Reservoir.  This funding made the first phase of this project possible, and the Senator’s ongoing efforts in seeking additional reimbursement funds will allow for the second phase to be completed and for projects like this in other disadvantaged communities. The project has also been made possible thanks to the generous support of Cook County via Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Chi-Cal Rivers Fund. Planning for the project received a Chicago Community Trust grant and support from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s Local Technical Assistance program.