Openlands Report
I have just received the Openlands study of issues facing forest preserves. It is titled " Forest Preserve and Conservation Districts in Northeastern Illinois: Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century." It studies the districts in the counties Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake and McHenry. (McHenry has a Conservation District instead of a Forest Preserve District. As my pilot buddy says "It's close enough for airline work!") It goes through what we do and how we do it, notes the general history of the districts, discusses a few differences here and there, makes some recommendations, and then comes to a conclusion.
For DuPage the general recommendations are to buy more land, work with state and federal elected officials to help local dollars go farther, develop a policy to prevent sale of land, advance ecological restoration, provide recreational opportunities, offer broad spectrum of education opportunities, and use sound fiscal management while looking to diversify our revenue sources. Finally it concludes that we should work with the other districts to enhance the overall quality of the region's preserves for the benefit of present and future generations.
My take- Keep doing what you're doing, just more of it and do it better. I had hoped to see more guidance on recreation and education, but I guess that is why we have a planning department. It does give me confidence in the direction the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County is headed. I had just hosted a sit-down with Will County to discuss collectively developing Greene Valley FP with their Whalon Lake FP to expand the offerings for both. Together they would form something of a regional preserve. I am working to bring in other partners and stake holders so this might be a grand venture. I am hoping to bring an education center here, as it has easy access from the 355 tollway for most of DuPage and from Will once the extention to US 80 is complete. Plus, the area has most of DuPage's habitat types. It doesn't hurt that Greene Valley already sees 230,000 visitors a year without a center.
More on this later...
For DuPage the general recommendations are to buy more land, work with state and federal elected officials to help local dollars go farther, develop a policy to prevent sale of land, advance ecological restoration, provide recreational opportunities, offer broad spectrum of education opportunities, and use sound fiscal management while looking to diversify our revenue sources. Finally it concludes that we should work with the other districts to enhance the overall quality of the region's preserves for the benefit of present and future generations.
My take- Keep doing what you're doing, just more of it and do it better. I had hoped to see more guidance on recreation and education, but I guess that is why we have a planning department. It does give me confidence in the direction the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County is headed. I had just hosted a sit-down with Will County to discuss collectively developing Greene Valley FP with their Whalon Lake FP to expand the offerings for both. Together they would form something of a regional preserve. I am working to bring in other partners and stake holders so this might be a grand venture. I am hoping to bring an education center here, as it has easy access from the 355 tollway for most of DuPage and from Will once the extention to US 80 is complete. Plus, the area has most of DuPage's habitat types. It doesn't hurt that Greene Valley already sees 230,000 visitors a year without a center.
More on this later...
posted by Carl at 6:31 AM
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