More disc golf at Prairie Park in DeKalb?

About 25 DeKalb residents turned out this week to continue the discussion on potential plans for improving Prairie Park.

The open house was the second of two meetings planned, as the DeKalb Park District considers state grant funding to help pay for upgrades to the park at 401 Clifford Drive.

Executive Director Paul Zepezauer said he was pleased by the turnout.

“I thought it was pretty strong,” Zepezauer said.

The park district is in the process of considering multiple concepts, including three different options for playgrounds.

Some of the proposed amenities for the roughly 107-acre park may include a new kayak drop-off, bridge renovation and disc golf course expansion.

DeKalb resident John McPartland reviewed the proposed plans for Prairie Park with his son.

He said he comes out to play disc golf at the park all the time.

“I love playing the disc golf course,” McPartland said. “We’d love to see more disc golf balls. But I like the idea of a playground out here for him.”

The disc golf course at Prairie Park is currently played on nine holes. With the proposed improvements, the course could expand to 18 holes.

DeKalb resident Dag Grada, who used to serve on the DeKalb park board, said he wanted to share his thoughts on the district’s plans.

“I feel that Prairie Park these days is a very underutilized asset in the district for nature recreation, for disc golf, and for the community in general in the deployment of a play structure,” Grada said. “I would very much like to see this asset developed out for the greater benefit of the community.”

DeKalb resident Armando Martinez viewed the proposed plans for Prairie Park with his kids and the family dog. He said it’d be nice if the park had more amenities, like a playground.

Current amenities at Prairie Park include a disc golf course, some picnic tables and a walking trail.

“We tend to take the kids [to] different parks,” Martinez said.

The park district intends to use public feedback to help inform a grant application submittal to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and its Open Space Land Acquisition and Development program, officials said.

Zepezauer said the feedback that residents provided was helpful.

“A lot of strong feelings on where the disc golf goes,” he said. “There’s been a lot of support for that. Playground seems to be the one that is a little more 50/50 [on] whether people want another playground or not.”