There may only be a sliver of Riverside within the boundaries of Lyons Township, but officials have pitched $340,200 in park improvements at Indian Gardens to that agency as Lyons Township decides how to allocate some $10 million in bonds it has been authorized to sell.
Village President Harold J. Wiaduck Jr., Village Manager Kathleen Rush and Director of Parks and Recreation Laure Kosey presented the village’s request to Lyons Township officials in October. The grant proposal was largely written by Nathan Thiel, the village’s acting public works director.
The proposal includes improvements to the Scout Cabin, extending the existing walking path along the Des Plaines River, erecting a playground to the east of the tennis court, resurfacing the tennis court area and replacing backstops and fencing at the two baseball fields.
In addition, the grant proposal calls for planting 20 trees in the ash tree-heavy areas north and west of the baseball fields, an area officials believe could be hit hard by an incursion of the emerald ash borer.
According to a survey conducted by the public works department, there are some 80 ash trees concentrated in those areas. Planting 20 new trees (a $6,000 line item) would help mitigate the impact of the loss of those ash trees should the ash borer hit Riverside.
“You can’t overpopulate the area, but you can at least fill in the gaps,” said Thiel of the idea for planting the new trees. “[Village Forester] Mike Collins and I have been looking at that area for a long time, especially with the number of ash trees and the possibility of the emerald ash borer wiping out that grove.”
Improvements to the Scout Cabin would include refinishing the hardwood floor, remodeling the bathrooms and constructing a trash enclosure. According to Kosey, the bathrooms at the Scout Cabin have not been updated in eight years and the hardwood floor was installed four years ago.
A year ago, some $3,000 in improvements to the cabin’s kitchen were made possible via a donation from the Riverside Junior Woman’s Charity.
The plan also contemplates extending the walking path some 1,300 feet, widening it slightly and lining it with crushed limestone, similar to the walking path in the Kiwanis Park oak savanna in Brookfield. It also calls for signage along the nature trail to point out native plants and wildlife.
Kosey said that the plan includes a playground area similar to that of Turtle Park in the Long Common.
“The First Division has no tot lot at all,” Kosey said.
Officials were given no idea whether their proposal would pass muster with Lyons Township trustees, who were handed 22 proposals from various governmental agencies within the township.
Last month, Lyons Township Supervisor Russell Hartigan said he would be meeting with the group’s bond counsel this month and that the township board would be refining criteria for choosing projects to fund.
Lyons Township was granted the authority to sell $10 million in bonds as the result of a referendum related to the Timber Trails golf course sale. The money will fund recreation-related projects throughout the township. The bonds must be sold before November 2009.