Friends & Calumet Stormwater Collaborative Tour Robbins Heritage Park

In August, Friends of the Chicago River, in partnership with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), hosted members of the Calumet Stormwater Collaborative (CSC) for a field tour of the Robbins Heritage Park and Midlothian Creek Restoration Project. The project, first envisioned through community planning efforts launched in 2014, officially opened to the public in 2024 and now stands as a landmark example of how nature-based stormwater solutions can deliver flood protection, habitat restoration, and economic revitalization.

Friends coordinates the CSC under the umbrella of the broader Greater Chicago Watershed Alliance, which Friends initiated in 2020. Previously facilitated by the Metropolitan Planning Council, the CSC continues its mission to strengthen cross-jurisdictional collaboration around stormwater management in the Calumet River watershed, with renewed emphasis on equitable nature-based solutions and multi-benefit projects.

South suburban Robbins, a community historically burdened by flooding due to its location in the Midlothian Creek floodplain, is now home to one of the region’s most ambitious green infrastructure projects. Phase 1 of the project, a diversion channel, was completed in 2024. Phase 2 is currently under construction, and CSC members were fortunate to get a sneak peek at the work taking shape. This next phase includes a stormwater park and pond, streambank stabilization, rain gardens, and bioswales designed to capture and filter runoff. Together, these improvements will not only reduce flooding but also restore nearly 2,000 linear feet of Midlothian Creek with native vegetation, improve water quality, and remove more than 1,300 parcels from the 100-year floodplain.

The Robbins project reflects the values at the heart of both the Greater Chicago Watershed Alliance and the CSC: strength through coalition, community-informed design, and harnessing the power of nature for green stormwater solutions. By uniting residents, engineers, planners, and multiple levels of government, the project shows how collaborative planning can address urgent flooding challenges while also creating new community spaces, healthier waterways, and opportunities for local growth.

As MWRD and the Village of Robbins advance this work, CSC members were able to see firsthand how partnerships and community input are shaping a project that goes beyond flood control to reimagine resilience for communities.