Relief group asks Naperville to add $500K to fund replacing debris-embedded lawns left by tornado
Naperville Tornado Relief is asking the Naperville City Council to contribute up to $500,000 to assist with the environmental cleanup work needed as a result of the June 20, 2021, tornado.
The funding would assist with final inspections to ensure that work replacing debris-laden lawns is completed with integrity, relief group co-founder Kristy Kennedy told the council Tuesday.
“Children will be able to safely play and pets will be able to safely go out. People will be able to host backyard gatherings with friends and family, and everyone can wear sandals,” Kennedy said.
Since partnering with the nonprofit M.P. Foundation in the fall, the nonprofit relief group was able to obtain $1 million in state funding through state Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, D-Naperville, to help restore yards in the area hardest hit by the EF-3 tornado.
“We’re talking about 300 homes east of Wehrli Road and south of 75th Street but are prioritizing about 70 homes,” Kennedy said. “Those were ones that were declared uninhabitable and homes closest in proximity to them.”
The council directed staff to investigate how the city might help residents recover from the tornado.
Councilman Benny White, acting as mayor pro tem for Steve Chirico, who attended the meeting by phone due to illness, suggested the city might use COVID-19 stimulus money from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
The city has opted to wait and research options for spending its pandemic recovery allotment.
Kennedy said the relief initiative focuses on three priorities — yard replacement, landscape remediation and beautification — though the main goal is removing dangerous debris lodged in the dirt by the tornado.
“It’s expensive work that requires removing the top several inches of grass and contaminated soil, disposing of it responsibly, replacing that with clean soil and grading it — which involves (topographic) surveys to ensure yards are put back as they were — and then laying grass seed,” Kennedy said.
Based on estimates the group has received to date, the average cost to replace an entire yard is $17,000, bringing the total to about $1.2 million, she said.
Parkways, which are owned by the city and maintained by residents, are included, Kennedy said.
If there’s money left after funding yard replacement, the plan is to offer grants to defray the cost of landscape remediation, she said.
This could include tree removal and cleaning out planting beds, which are also full of glass and debris.
Any funds left over will go toward grants to replace lost trees, shrubs and annual plants, Kennedy said.
The group estimates it will need more than $1.5 million to complete all the work, she said.
A commitment from the city is needed so they can move forward with residents knowing there’s enough funding to complete the work this year, Kennedy said.
Councilman Paul Hinterlong asked if the group had a system in place to prevent people from asking for a new yard even though they might not need one.
Kennedy said the work is intensive and involves a commitment from the residents, who will have to water the grass seed to ensure they have lawns. “No one’s going to ask for this that doesn’t need this,” she said.
She added that the funding doesn’t pay for soil under decks or replacing fish ponds.
A number of fraud protections will be in place to prevent waste, she said. The group is vetting contractors with a plan to offer residents the choice of three preferred vendors.
While residents will have the opportunity to pick another contractor, she said, they’ll have to sign releases before receiving the funding.
A town hall meeting to outline how the grant application process will work is to be held in coming weeks, Kennedy said. Certified letters will be going out to homeowners throughout the area so everyone will be notified.
