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Engineers urge Cook County to adopt county‑wide floodplain modeling and beefed subdivision standards
Summary
Consultants told the court Cook County needs a hydraulic master model, stronger subdivision standards and a floodplain management program to reduce downstream impacts as large developments expand. They recommended fee structures to pass costs to developers and said hazard‑mitigation grants can fund studies and projects.
Kevin Ware of KJE and Rhonda Hershey of Waterway Engineering told the court that existing FEMA maps are broad and site‑specific analyses will be needed as subdivisions and large commercial developments come into Cook County.
"The flood plain delineation that FEMA has done over the last 50 to 60 years is fairly loose… it's not very site specific," Kevin Ware said, arguing for a county hydraulic model and a checklist that would let reviewers identify hotspots and require more robust detention and drainage analysis from applicants.
Hershey noted Cook County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program and said adopting a stronger local ordinance and pursuing a higher Community Rating System score could reduce premiums for residents. She recommended starting with known hot spots, adding hydrology studies and then incorporating projects into the county's hazard mitigation plan so they can be funded through FEMA and state grant programs.
County leaders asked practical questions about scope and cost. Ware said typical initial tasks — a county‑level hydraulic study and a floodplain management program — could be passed on to applicants and developers, and that an initial budget estimate for a countywide study could be in the tens of thousands of dollars, with larger hydrology work costing more depending on scale.
The court directed staff to continue reviewing subdivision guidelines and consider budgeting for the recommended studies and ordinance updates; no formal ordinance changes were adopted at this meeting.
