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New path latest improvement at St. James Farm

A new, two-mile limestone loop trail will open next month at the St. James Farm Forest Preserve in Warrenville in time for the preserve's May 23 Family Field Day event.

The trail, one of many ongoing improvements at the preserve, will connect to the Illinois Prairie Path and circle the preserve's main and eastern farm areas. Much of it will follow historic trail alignments and tree-lined promenades to minimize habitat disturbance while creating scenic outdoor experiences.

The project was funded in part by a $200,000 grant from the Federal Highway Administration for the Recreational Trails Program, which is administered by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

In April 2010, the district's board of commissioners approved a three-phase development plan for St. James Farm. Phase I, which began in 2011 and is 50 percent complete, focuses on public-access improvements such as the trail, an entrance road and 100-car parking lot, a welcome plaza, and improvements to various structures.

The entrance road and parking lot opened in 2012; the welcome plaza in July 2013.

Phase I also will bring sewer and water lines to the east side of the preserve by the end of next year via Wiesbrook Road along Hoy Avenue, said Kevin Horsfall, district landscape architect supervisor.

Also under way at St. James Farm is the Spring Brook Creek Restoration Project, which is expected to conclude by the end of 2018. The project will reintroduce more natural twists and turns to the straightened waterway and create adjacent wetlands.

The new meanders will connect the creek to the floodplain in the surrounding preserve, allowing it to better receive, store and filter nutrient-rich floodwaters. The configuration and the addition of gravels, cobbles and boulders also will improve habitat complexity for macroinvertebrates, fish and mussels.

In addition, the restoration project is removing invasive, nonnative vegetation from the creek's upland areas and replacing it with native plants. Crews recently removed aggressive, nonnative woody species from the understory of two small oak woodlands near the corner of Mack and Winfield roads.

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