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GLEN ELLYN – A new playground at Lake Ellyn Park that replaced the park's decades-old playground is already proving to be a popular attraction.
Giana Sitzes and her three kids were taking full advantage of the new playground during a recent visit to Lake Ellyn Park. The previous playground was built in 1991.
"It's very kid friendly," Sitzes said.
The new playground opened July 8, with the previous playground being removed by the nonprofit group Kids Around the World and donated to a less fortunate community.
Glen Ellyn Park District officials had hoped the playground would be open for use starting July 1 in time for the Lake Ellyn Cardboard Regatta, but rainy weather in the spring caused construction delays, Park District Executive Director Dave Harris said.
"Also, within the playground itself, it was hard to have more than one contractor work at any given time," Harris said. "That slowed it down a little bit. You had to finish one task before moving to the other."
He thinks the new playground turned out even better than expected.
"It's such a unique location for a playground, amongst the mature trees," he said. "It kind of blends into the environment. Having the trees provide a natural shade structure for the site is pretty unique as well. Seeing how well the playground kind of blends in and integrates into the natural setting probably exceeded my expectations."
The Park District is moving ahead to finish $800,000 in improvements at Lake Ellyn Park after a $400,000 matching grant was released by the state earlier this year. The Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grant had been put on hold by Gov. Bruce Rauner when he took office.
After the district in summer 2016 finished a project to restore the Lake Ellyn Boathouse as well as do other improvements, it was notified funding for the grant was being reinstated.
The district was first awarded the grant in 2014, Harris said, but it was suspended shortly after Rauner took office in January 2015. The grant was among $26 million in grants to 75 parks and recreation projects in the state that Rauner froze as part of an executive order reevaluating funding.
The grant is allowing the district to finish the other improvements included in the Lake Ellyn Master Plan, including replacing the park's playground, installing a fishing pier and reconfiguring paths.
The fishing pier, which was installed at the northwest corner of the lake, has proven to be popular, Harris said.
"This year, we made a big effort, in combination with Glenbard West Bass Fishing Club, to stock the lake with bass because the bass population was pretty minimal," he said.
The work also includes installation of benches and bike racks, vegetative restorers, interpretive and landmark signage, and landscape improvements. The work was deferred after the grant was put on hold.
The vegetative restorers will be installed near the inlets in Lake Ellyn.
"They filter and cleanse the incoming stormwater," Harris said.
The installation of signage throughout the park, including entryway signs, will probably be completed by September, he said.
The work at Lake Ellyn Park comes after the park was named a historic landmark by the village of Glen Ellyn earlier this year, along with being named to the National Register of Historic Places, the official list of the nation's historic places worthy of preservation.
Lake Ellyn Park is the most used park the district operates. According to a 2012 community survey, the park is used by 70 percent of all Park District households.