The project will replace the dam’s failing outlet control structure. The dam is one of six that the Forest Preserve District owns and the state regulates.

Project Need

Recent inspections noted a significant section loss in the flowline of the pipe, causing a potential loss of structural integrity. The outlet, a 36-by-58-inch corrugated metal pipe, appears to be original, and staff is evaluating options such as lining the pipe in place or fully replacing it.

The dam provides flood-control benefits for homes immediately downstream in the Westwood Creek floodplain. It can hold over 135 million gallons of stormwater from the 2.6-square-mile watershed.

It was built in 1968 before the District acquired the preserve and had improvements made to the outlet structure in the late 1980s.

Status

The project was completed.