With more heavy rains in the forecast, CBS 2 Chicago interviews the MWRD's Director of Maintenance and Operations Director Ed Staudacher and West Side residents having experienced past flooding.

The MWRD participated in the ribbon-cutting on a new athletic field in Robbins, IL. The new facility will serve as the new home of the Robbins CalPark Eagles.

Guests of all ages may take an abbreviated tour of the plant, meet with MWRD staff for interactive activities and take home free oak tree saplings, milkweed and native wildflower seeds.

The improvements, including a ramp, a retaining wall and a few braille signs, allowed dozens of area residents to access the park for the first time.

The SEPA station aerates water to support aquatic life and enhances water quality in the Calumet-Sag Channel, while offering a scenic gathering place along the waterway.

Through the MWRD’s Green Infrastructure Partnership Program, the project will install permeable paver parking lanes capable of capturing up to 112,800 gallons of stormwater per rain event.

The O’Brien plant opened in October 1928. At the time, it was the largest sewage treatment facility in the world. Nearly a century later, it still serves over 1.3 million people across 143 square miles.

A comprehensive flood mitigation project that officials say will add 4.5 million gallons of floodwater storage capacity for Crestwood and Midlothian was presented to residents.