The following was submitted by Ryan Kilpatrick for publication.
The Center for Neighborhood Technology
(CNT) and
Let’s Go Chicago will host another
Gross Gathering event for victims of urban flooding to share their stories and meet with contractors and officials, and discuss community-led solutions to flooding problems in the Chicago area.
WHEN: Thursday, September 26, 2013, 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: United Church of Rogers Park, 1545 W. Morse Ave, Chicago, IL, 60626 [map]
WHY: Residents, businesses, and schools in the Chicago area continue to experience water (and worse) in their basements and backyards as a result of urban flooding. Urban flooding is the inundation of land or property in built-up areas caused by rainfall overwhelming the capacity of drainage systems, such as storm sewers. There are several ways in which storm water enters properties: backup through sewer pipes, toilets and sinks into buildings; seepage through building wall and floors; the accumulation of water on property and in public rights-of-way; and the overflow of water from water bodies such as rivers and lakes.
The Gross Gathering convenings are inspired by CNT’s ongoing work on the prevalence and cost of urban flooding, and on community-based approaches to solve the problem. Recent CNT research identified 177,000 property damage claims for wet basements across 96 percent of Cook County ZIP codes between 2007-2011. The equivalent of one in six properties in Cook County submitted private insurance or FEMA claims totaling $660 million in damage payouts.
WHO: Urban flooding victims from the Rogers Park area; Harriet Festing, CNT’s Water Program Director; representatives from Let’s Go Chicago; flood mitigation contractors; elected officials (TBD).
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