SPRINGFIELD, IL – State Rep. Karen Yarbrough (D-Maywood) on Thursday passed legislation out of the Illinois House to extend the Addison Creek Restoration Commission, ensuring that work can continue on reducing the size of the floodplain and eliminating the need for local residents to maintain flood insurance.
 
“The Addison Creek Restoration Commission has put a lot of hard work and study into ways we can reduce the boundaries of the floodplain and remove the need for local homeowners to maintain flood insurance, and it’s important that we make sure they can continue their work,” Yarbrough said. 
 
Yarbrough’s House Bill 606 moves back the repeal date of the Addison Creek Restoration Act from January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2015, giving the Commission more time to study the problem and utilize state funding to reduce the size of the floodplain.  Several local communities are affected by the Addison Creek floodplain, including Bellwood, Broadview, Melrose Park, Northlake, North Riverside, Stone Park and Westchester.
 
Upon completion of the project, the Federal Emergency Management Agency would redraw the boundaries of the floodplain, releasing thousands of local homeowners and businesses from the need to purchase mandated flood insurance.   Additionally, property values would increase and local municipalities would see a reduced financial  burden associated with flood response and cleanup.
 
“The benefits of getting the Addison Creek floodplain under control will be felt by everyone in these communities,” Yarbrough said.  “We will see more money in the pockets of local families as well as an increase in economic development in the region.”
 
For more information, please contact Yarbrough’s constituent service office at (708) 615-1747 or visit the Commission’s website at www.acrc.illinois.gov.