Elm Grove voters approve storm management referendum to 'daylight' Underwood Creek
Elm Grove voters have approved a referendum for the village to complete a longtime stormwater management plan by resurfacing a portion of Underwood Creek from underneath a downtown parking lot.
More than 3,800 Elm Grove residents, or about 88% of voters, voted in favor of the $8.5 million project that village officials say would not cost taxpayers more money. About 500, or about 12% of voters, voted no for the referendum.
Village of Elm Grove President Jim Koleski told the Journal Sentinel he's grateful for the support residents have shown to greenlight a project that's more than 15 years in the making.
Next, village officials will work to acquire the remaining properties for the project, open the construction bid process in January 2025 and then start construction in the spring of next year, Koleski said.
What does it mean to 'daylight' a creek?
Stream daylighting brings buried waterways that have been diverted underground, in most cases for development, back to the surface. The result is an uncovered, restored stream.
In downtown Elm Grove, about a 900-foot portion of Underwood Creek that once flowed freely was confined by concrete so what is now the Sendik's building and parking lot could be developed. The stream flows through a box culvert underground, which is now failing, according to the village.
Daylighting the creek will improve flooding, the area's ecosystem and downtown's walkability and connectivity, according to Village Trustee John Schindler.
"It's going to be great for the environment," Schindler told the Journal Sentinel.
Why should part of Underwood Creek be brought back to the surface?
Long before downtown Elm Grove was developed, Underwood Creek was in its natural state as a long, winding channel that took up a lot of space and was surrounded by a wetland, Schindler previously told the Journal Sentinel.
"This wetland acted like a giant sponge, absorbing water during heavy rainfall, and letting water out slowly during dry spells," Schindler describes in a video educating residents about the daylighting project.
By 1958, part of the stream in Elm Grove was developed over, and routed into a concrete culvert, which no longer absorbed the water as the wetland did.
Downtown flooding became a regularity, including a deadly flood in August 1998 in which two boys drowned.
The village took flood management measures in 2005, but paused one of the final steps ― bringing the creek to the light of day ― until it secured grants to fund the project.
This last effort to mitigate flooding will affect dozens of communities both upstream and downstream in the Menomonee River watershed for the better, according to Schindler.
How will the Underwood Creek daylighting project be paid for?
Village Manager Tom Harrigan previously told the Journal Sentinel the project could cost about $8.4 million. Less than half that cost would be covered by Tax Incremental District No. 2, which is mostly made of commercial properties and created to help flood control implementation. Stormwater User Fees, which property owners already pay, would be reallocated to cover about $5 million of the project, he said.
The project had to go to referendum because it exceeds $1 million, following an Elm Grove rule that all public works projects that exceed that cost must be decided on by voters in a referendum.
Bridget Fogarty can be reached at
