DYER | Town officials and curious residents on Thursday morning pushed aside heavy brush, stepped over fallen tree limbs and steadied themselves on the steep, muddy embankment of Plum Creek to get a closer look at how to handle the next phase of the Berens Monaldi floodwall project.

Stormwater Board President Bill Jackson said he wanted to get out and walk the creek route, rather than make decisions based from merely looking at a map.

A mix of town officials, residents, engineers and county surveyor's staff walked the creek behind Forest Park Drive, pausing to point out problem areas, ask questions and discuss possible solutions.

The second phase of the project begins at the end of the approximately 1,800-foot first phase floodwall. The town needs to work with engineers to decide which option, such as a floodwall or earthen berm, is the best way to keep water in the creek.

Once the town determines the direction it wants to take, the county will need to approve the plan, because Plum Creek is a regulated drain.

Despite the August flooding that sent Plum Creek water rushing at 1 million gallons a minute, some residents along the plotted second phase oppose the floodwall, Jackson said.

"Residents that might be resistant didn't take water (in the flood)," he said.

They're NIMBYs, (Not In My Back Yard), he said.

Dyer resident Charles Graves is no NIMBY. The floodwall is completed to the edge of his backyard, and he doesn't mind if it continues behind his property, he said.

But he doesn't think a floodwall is the perfect answer.

Graves lived a long time in southern Illinois, where he learned that a fight against flood water is a losing battle.

"You can't control Mother Nature," he said. "You give in and clean up later on."

Graves took in more than 6 feet of water in his basement in the August flood.

Graves commended Dyer for its swift post-storm efforts.

"The town did a fabulous job on their cleanup," he said.