The Sterling Park District is planning a big summer of construction, with work continuing on the multi-use path and major upgrades happening at Thomas Park.

Work on what the district is calling Section 5 of the 4.32-mile multiuse path from Hoover Park to Sauk Valley Community College will continue through the summer, with expected completion by the fall.

“We’ve been working on this project for over a decade. It was always our goal,” said Larry Schuldt, executive director of the Sterling Park District.

Section 5 of the path is a 10-foot-wide, 1.92-mile asphalt multi-use path that will run from 43rd Avenue, the dead-end road between Walmart and Harbor Freight on the east end of Sterling, to Mound Hill Road. Martin and Company Excavating of Oregon was awarded the contract. The cost of Section 5 is $1,273,605. That amount is being funded completely through donations, Schuldt said.

“This is a major segment of what we are trying to do,” Schult said.

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Building of the next section of the Sterling multi-use path is about to begin. The path will eventually run out to Sauk Valley Community College, a distance of four miles. The new construction will run from behind Harbor Freight to Mound Hill Road. (Alex T. Paschal)

Section 5 is part of a trail system that will link Sterling’s riverfront with the far east side of town and Sauk Valley Community College.

“This trail is part of the trail that starts at Martin’s Landing near the Dillon Home,” Schuldt said.

The 1.55-mile section of the trail from Hoover Park to 43rd Avenue is completed. Schuldt said once Section 5 is done, there will be about a mile of trail left to be built to get to the college. That final section will be the most complicated and costly.

“Within that mile, there’s a 106-foot bridge that will have to be built,” he said.

The park district plans to apply for a state grant to help fund that final section of the trail. Schuldt said the timeline for completion of the trail depends on funding.

“The next section is going to be pretty pricey because of the bridge, so we are going to apply this summer for a grant from the state,” he said.

If the district receives the grant, construction on the final section of the path would probably start in 2028. If the district doesn’t receive the grant, Schuldt said it could be 2029 or later before the path is completed.

The second major project for the park district is renovation and construction work at Thomas Park. In 2025, the park district received a $600,000 Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to upgrade Thomas Park.

Work on Thomas Park started last summer and included adding 21 parking spaces.

“This year is the real major part,” Schuldt said.

The upgrades include demolishing the old pickleball courts and adding two new pickleball courts, for a total of eight pickleball courts, as well as adding an additional basketball court.

The district is paying for an ADA-compliant playground for the park.

“We will have a really nice playground with a couple of zip lines, which will be a big improvement,” Schuldt said. The park district is also building a fully accessible fishing pier.

Stichter Construction of Erie was awarded the contract for $995,830. The project’s total cost, including the parking lot and the playground, is $1.4 million, which is offset by the $600,000 grant and the park district separately purchasing the playground equipment.