Villa Park awarded $400,000 Open Space Land grant

The Village of Villa Park was recently awarded $400,000. It is one of 87 agencies to benefit from the $30 million Illinois has available in the Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grant fund as announced by Gov. Pritzker on Friday, July 8.

The village will allocate the grant funds to redevelop Lufkin Park.

The redevelopments will include a nature walking trail, playground nature theme, floating fishing pier, band shell performance area, water spray area (nature themed), ninja challenge style playground, as well as bathroom facilities with a picnic shelter overhang.

Discussions on the park renovation began in March 2020, as staff updated the parks and recreation commission on the timeline to submit the application for a grant.

The Village of Villa Park and the Parks and Recreation Department aims to provide more recreational opportunities, both passive and active, to the residents of Villa Park.

Currently, the residential area directly east and north of Lufkin Park is lacking any parkland or recreation amenities.