Park District Lands Grant for Skate Park, Tennis Courts

For at least five years, the has been trying to get a skate park in town. A $372,000 grant awarded last week will make that and more possible to enhance two parks in town.

The Park District was one of 36 to be awarded the 2011 Open Space Lands Aquisition and Development grant, which is financed by part of the state’s real estate transfer tax. The Park District will match the $372,000 grant to enhance and Royal Meadows parks, which sit on 16.5 acres of adjacent land.

“New Lenox will finally get a skate park and tennis courts we can call our own,” Park District spokeswoman Lauren Lotz said.

The grant application was submitted nearly a year ago, but Parks Director Greg Lewis said he was on edge this year to see whether the state would release the funding for the grants. He credited Rep. Renee Kosel (R-New Lenox) and Sen. Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) with helping secure the money for the local parks.

"I was dreading the fact if we didn’t get it," Lewis said. "I can’t say enough about Representative Kosel and Senator Radogno because they got behind it."

With the money secured, the Park District will look to create a long, linear park design that utilizes the open space of Countryview and Royal Meadows, located on the southwest end of New Lenox. One of the premier pieces of the new park will be the skate park, which Lewis said is something that the Park District has tried to find a spot for but struggled.

"Nobody wanted it in their back yard, so to speak," he said. "But while there are issues with skate parks, if you build them right and design them right you can mitigate those problems. And New Lenox needs more things for kids to do to stay out of trouble."

Another feature that will be new to New Lenox parks is tennis court facilities. Lewis said there are tennis courts utilized by residents at the Lincoln-Way high schools, but that during tennis season it can become too busy for people who aren't students on the teams.

Finally, the creek that runs along the two parks will be utilized in the new plans. A boardwalk will be created to provide easy transportation throughout the parks, and Lewis said there will be an educational aspect as well.

"The space back there gives a different dimension as to how we can keep those two parks together and help educate the community on the area," he said. "It’s not always about active recreation, the passive recreation is important, too."

He said that model has worked well at Sharon's Bay and Crystal Springs parks, which also share a trail that features educational signs about the wetlands.

Lewis expects some basic preparation to begin late this summer, and the bulk of the work to be done in spring 2012. The OSLAD grants give park districts a two-year window to complete the projects.