The
Downers Grove Park District is
developing a long-term master plan for
its Walnut Park property. Walnut Park is
a 19.6-acre parcel
of land on Walnut Avenue adjacent to the
Belmont Prairie Buffer in the northwest
corner of Downers Grove, just south of
Ogden Avenue.
The Park District conducted an online
Community Survey to obtain public input
and has posted a
summary of responses.
Members of the Heritage Alliance
participated in the survey and are
encouraged by the following Park
District statement in a WALNUT PARK PROPERTY Q & A:
5. How
will
the possible development of the Walnut
Park property impact the existing Belmont
Prairie Nature Preserve and connected
prairie buffer?
Natural area
preservation is at the heart of the
District's mission. The Park District
will continue to preserve and protect
the Belmont Prairie and prairie buffer.
Any possible development of the Walnut
Park property would carefully avoid any
potential hydrological, ecological or
other adverse impacts on the prairie and
buffer. Protecting the buffer zone is
required and any development on it must
be approved by the Illinois Nature
Preserves Commission.
The
development of the Walnut Park property
could help the District to improve the
health and accessibility of the buffer and
prairie, assist with raising awareness and
provide ways to educate visitors about
this treasured natural area in our
community.
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PDHA Chair Ken Lerner wrote to explain
the organization's thinking about
planning for Walnut Park. Ken's letter
emphasizes PDHA's advocacy for
protection of the Belmont Prairie, a
dedicated Illinois Nature Preserve, and
its dedicated Buffer. The letter begins
as follows:
"Pierce Downer’s Heritage
Alliance appreciates the Park
District’s commitment to seeking
public input as part of long-term
planning for this property.
"We have a few recommendations as
detailed below. The unifying theme is
that in developing plans for its
Walnut Ave. holdings, the Park
District balance active and passive
recreation priorities.
"Since the Walnut Park area is
adjacent to the Belmont Prairie
Buffer, planning and any eventual
construction should be conducted with
that in mind, to avoid any
hydrological or other adverse impact
on the buffer and prairie."
To
read
the letter from Pierce Downer's
Heritage Alliance in full please click
here.
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* * * *
COVID-19
and the Great
Outdoors
A
visit to a
local park or
forest
preserve can
be a nice
break during
the COVID-19
emergency. A
brisk walk or
run can be a
good way to
get your steps
in. Local
outdoor
recreation
areas are
generally open
for hiking,
walking and
running, with
some
exceptions.
Downers Grove
Park District
–– The
Park District
has announced
TIER
4 MITIGATION
MEASURES
beginning
Thursday,
February 4.
Information
and updates at
dgparks.org/news/together-again
DuPage County
Forest
Preserves ––
The
preserves
are open
including
parking lots,
trails, and
off-leash dog
areas.
Buildings and
restrooms are
closed. At
some
facilities,
the buildings
are closed but
grounds and
surrounding
areas are
open:
Fullersburg
Woods Nature
Education
Center,
Mayslake
Peabody
Estate, and
St. James
Farm.
Information
and updates at
dupageforest.org/coronavirus
*
* * * *
Public
tours inside the 1846 Blodgett House started on
Saturday, December 14, 2019 during the Merry and Bright celebration
at the Downers Grove Museum, 831 Maple Avenue.
Thanks
to
community-wide support the 1846 Pioneer Blodgett
House has come a long way during the past
decade, well beyond its initial journey from
Randall Street onto the Park District's Museum
Campus. Substantial progress toward completion
of the building's interior has been achieved in
2019 as a result of two major grants. The house
now looks really great
!
Come see the 1846 Blodgett House before long.
Starting June 25, 2022 tours
are again being offered on the third Saturday of
the month. The tours had been suspended since
mid-2020. Please consult the Park District's
registration page for information about 1846
Blodgett House tours and other interesting
activities.
*
* * * *
Betty
Cheever
&
Wally Brown
Honored
|
2023
Village
Candidates Answered
Our Questions
PDHA
and Greener
Grove
submitted
three
questions to
each of the
candidates for
Mayor and
Commissioner
in Downers
Grove. Read
their
responses just
as they sent
them by
clicking here. The
responses are
provided in
alphabetical
order within
each category.
The two
Mayoral
candidates are
first,
followed by
the six
candidates for
Commissioner.
_______________________________
Note: A couple
of the
responses to
the question
about the
Greenest
Region Compact
(GRC) refer to
level or
option “3B.”
That is a
reference to
the village
staff’s report
on the GRC, which
described
various
options for
implementing
it. Option 3B
is the
strongest
option,
including
development of
a village
sustainability
plan and
reviving the
Environmental
Concerns
Commission to
oversee
developing and
implementing
the plan.
Village council candidate
conversations on March 19, 2021 addressed historic
preservation and
tree preservation policies among
other issues of interest. Click
here to view the conversations.
Pierce
Downer's
Heritage Alliance notes
with regret the passing of one
of our
founding directors, Jane
Amorosi. Jane was always a
strong advocate for
preservation of open space.
We are grateful to Jane for
her role in safeguarding
Lyman Woods as a
publicly-owned Forest
Preserve, a beautiful and
high-quality natural area in
Downers Grove. The
Lyman Woods Preserve today
serves as a recreational and
nature-education destination
for the entire region.
Please
click here to read Jane's
obituary.
We also
gratefully remember several
other past champions of our
community's natural
heritage.
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* * * *
Please
consider
a charitable
donation to
support
educational
activities of
Pierce
Downer's
Heritage
Alliance.
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