Park district OKs kids park

North Aurora kids, take comfort.

No longer will street signs exclusively cater to adults.

A tricycle path, complete with miniature street signs to help guide traffic, is among several features of a new park that will be built in the 111-home Remington Landings subdivision.

The Fox Valley Park District approved a $181,370 bid Monday from Copenhaver Construction Inc. in Gilberts to build Remington Landing Park. Seven companies bid for the work.

Construction on the project will begin as soon as materials are ordered and received.

Owner Ken Copenhaver said he expects to begin construction in about six weeks and the project should be complete in early September.

The four-acre park will be built at the northwest corner of Western Drive and Bauer Road.

The park will sit at the northwest corner of the park district's coverage area. It will include swings for tots, a half-court basketball area, seating for parents and a lawn area in the northern part of the park.

The tricycle path, which will ring a play area near the center of the park, was modeled after Naperville's Safety Town, said Jeff Long, the park district's public relations manager. Safety Town is a miniature city that gives kids a chance to learn about safety in a less intimidating environment.

"This was kind of modeled after that with the small street paths," Long said. "Kids feel like they're big on their bikes and get a feel for how big people ride."

The park district received the land through a land/cash agreement.

In a land/cash agreement, no open space funds are used and the park district negotiates directly with the developer, in this case Remington Homes of Elgin.