No More Flooded Basements? Chicago Is Building Underground Reservoirs — and Galewood Is on the List

By Socialhood News · Il/Chicago/Galewood ·

Galewood homeowners who've spent summers anxiously watching the skies during heavy rainstorms just got some long-awaited good news. The City of Chicago and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) announced this week that a new stormwater mitigation project — two underground storage tanks with a combined capacity of 1.7 million gallons — will deliver flood protection directly to Galewood and neighboring communities including North and South Austin and West Garfield Park.

The project, announced July 7, represents a

2 million investment split evenly between the city and MWRD. The tanks, currently under construction on the West Side, are designed to capture water that would otherwise overwhelm Chicago's aging sewer system and back up into homes during the kind of intense, fast-moving storms that have battered the Northwest Side in recent years. Mayor Brandon Johnson framed it plainly: the goal is to give every Chicagoan peace of mind when severe weather rolls in. Once both tanks are fully operational, more than 2,900 homes and businesses across the targeted neighborhoods — including Galewood — are expected to benefit.

For a neighborhood of proud homeowners who pour care into their bungalows and two-flats, this kind of infrastructure investment is genuinely worth celebrating. A drier basement is a better basement. Stay connected with your neighbors and follow the latest neighborhood updates at galewoodneighbors.org.

Sources:
1. https://news.wttw.com/2026/07/07/chicago-building-pair-underground-reservoirs-ease-west-side-flooding