Apache Park in Des Plaines getting renovation with state funds
The Des Plaines Park District has been awarded a $251,000 grant from the state Open Space Land Acquisition and Development Program for the renovation of Apache Park, 2100 Pine St.
The renovated park will be equipped with a walking/jogging path, a picnic shelter, a splash pad and a youth soccer field to complement the playground that was built in 2012. The renovation is scheduled to begin in the fall, with completion and opening scheduled for the spring of 2016.
The rest of the cost of the $502,000 project will be paid with $151,000 from the park district and $100,000 in federal Housing and Urban Development funding coming from the city.
The park district and the city worked together with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning to devise the site plan, with the final site development rendering for the project presented in mid-October.
"We look forward to building an outstanding recreational area for the Apache Park neighborhood," Des Plaines Park District Executive Director Don Miletic said in a news release.
When the city approved its share of the funding last May, officials said the goal of plan is to improve neighborhood well-being and safety in an area experiencing gang activity and lack of property upkeep.
"I think it's really going to change the whole atmosphere in the park and ... make it a destination," said 5th Ward Alderman Jim Brookman.
The district credited Gov. Pat Quinn, state Sen. Dan Kotowski and state Rep. Marty Moylan with helping the district win the funding.