Running company paying to plow path in south Naperville parks

Naperville runners who aren't afraid of the cold will have a new plowed path as an outdoor exercise option: the Frontier Park Trail on the south side of the city.

Naperville Running Company will reimburse Naperville Park District for costs incurred to plow the two-mile path after each snowfall of two inches or more this year, owner Kris Hartner said.

The path begins just west of Route 59, where a pedestrian bridge carries it past Naperville Running Company's new south store and on into Frontier Park, Ashbury Park and the Ashbury Greenway.

With the south store just feet away from the path at 3416 S. Route 59, Suite 116, Hartner said he heard from a lot of runners who were "bummed" they wouldn't be able to run on it whenever it snows. So he thought back to a partnership he'd heard of in Boston, where shoe company New Balance pays for the Boston Department of Conservation and Recreation to plow a popular running path along the Charles River.

"I thought maybe we could do that here," Hartner said. "It just didn't make sense to not have it useful for what could be a long chunk of the year."

Naperville Park District thought a plowing agreement seemed like a "natural fit," said Brett Lindahl, sponsorship and events manager.

The park district planned to plow the path Monday night, when between three and six inches of snow was predicted to fall.

"With the expected weather in the next day or two, I'm sure they'll be busy down there," Lindahl said.

Hartner isn't sure how much the plowing agreement will cost because it depends on how many times it snows. But he said it would be cheaper than hiring a snow removal company because the park district has the personnel on staff and the plowing equipment nearby.

Runners, especially those training for long races, like to use the Frontier Park Trail as a connection between neighborhoods or as part of an out-and-back route, and now Hartner says they will be able to do so with surer footing.

"At least it'll give people another option to get out and run and do what they love," Hartner said.