Thursday, December 23, 2004
Pioneer Press
by ANDREW SCHROEDTER

Upon learning he would not be reslated for a second term as village president, Anthony Ruzicka said he wanted to accomplish two things before the end of his term in April.

Included on that list was to secure a financial commitment from the Cook County Forest Preserve District to clean the east diversion ditch.

Whether Ruzicka now has one less thing to worry about depends on who you ask.

Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin, D-13th, of Evanston, said this week that the ditch's clean-up is included on a list of projects to be funded by the county's recent sale of $100 million in general obligation bonds.

And Village Manager Paul Harlow said Suffredin's office has informed him that project, expected to cost about $1.4 million, could be put to bid within six weeks.

A timetable for the work's beginning hasn't been set, but Suffredin said Monday that "the money is there."

Or is it?

John Gibson, spokesman for County Board President John Stroger, said the east diversion ditch is "one of several improvements under consideration." He declined further comment on the matter, but said the county has not allocated any money for the ditch's repair.

The east diversion ditch essentially functions as a drainage canal, routing excess stormwater into the Skokie Lagoons. Located on forest preserve district property, it extends along Glencoe's western edge from Dundee Road to Winnetka.

Since its construction in the 1930s, village officials say it has never been cleaned and is now badly clogged with 12,000 cubic yards of debris and silt. The obstruction has been blamed for this summer's residential and street flooding in the western part of the village, especially near Dundee and Hohlfelder roads.

For years, Glencoe has pressed the county to repair the ditch and there's a difference of opinion about the project's price tag. Glencoe maintains the clean-up will cost about $1.4 million, while county officials have put the number at $750,000.

Suffredin said Monday the county will pay "whatever it takes," and added he doesn't expect the project to be completed for less than $1 million.

Of the $100 million generated through the bond sale, about $50 million has been earmarked for capital improvements at the Chicago Botanic Garden and Brookfield Zoo.