Carpentersville gets grant for canoe launch at McNamee Park

When Thom McNamee donated land for the Tim "Mackers" McNamee Park along the Fox River in Carpentersville in 1998 to honor his slain brother, the local entrepreneur had grand plans for an elaborate canoe launch complete with a raised boat dock, stairs and landscaping.

At the time, the price tag was $1 million.

The project languished for more than a decade and Thom McNamee died in June of a brain tumor before work on the launch even began.

But a $10,000 grant from the Kane County Forest Preserve District, presented to village trustees at Tuesday's board meeting, will enable Carpentersville to begin work on a scaled-back version of canoe launch Thom McNamee envisioned along the east side of the Fox River.

"It was Thom's dream to finish it before he left us," said Kane County Board Member John Fahy, who along with county board member Holly Lindgren presented the village board with a check. "He left his plan to put a canoe launch in for all of Carpentersville and northern Kane County to enjoy," Fahy said.

The estimated cost of the permanent launch is about $19,000, the village's park committee Chairman Judy Sigwalt said. The committee now has about $18,000 available to begin design and engineering work this year with the intent to break ground in the spring, Sigwalt said.

The proposed material is the Aqua Bric, a permeable interlocking paver that allows for natural stormwater drainage and groundwater recharge. Sigwalt said the launch will fit in with similar structures in West Dundee and Algonquin.

"The canoe launch gives residents another avenue of recreation that is of no cost," Sigwalt said. "With the economy the way it is ... people are looking to do more in their parks and more physical recreation like canoeing, hiking and biking."