Winfield views riverwalk designs

There are plans for a public plaza to host concerts, a 1.5-mile walking trail along the DuPage River and trails to connect neighborhoods with Winfield's town center.

Now all the village needs to figure out is how to pay for it.

Winfield trustees got their first glimpse Thursday at plans for a riverwalk -- essentially a brick-lined promenade along the river's edge -- they hope could one day serve as the bedrock for a vibrant downtown area.

Jill Brosig, chair of a residents committee that spent much of the last year sketching out the proposal, emphasized the project could be a key step in creating a unique identity for the village of roughly 10,000 people.

"We really do have a hidden jewel in Winfield, and that's the river," Brosig said.

The project certainly isn't a novel idea, either in Winfield or DuPage County.

Winfield trustees for years have brought up the prospect of developing a walking trail along the branches of the DuPage River, just west of Winfield and Highlake roads, as a way to hasten its downtown redevelopment efforts.

Much of that excitement has to do with the success of Naperville's vaunted Riverwalk. Village officials in nearby Itasca are also hoping to recreate that success in their own community.

Yet Thursday's presentation, perhaps for the first time, brought a visual element to the hopes and dreams of some Winfield residents and village officials.

The trail would abut land the village hopes to market to developers as part of its downtown redevelopment plans, much of which is now property owned by the village, Central DuPage Hospital and the Winfield Fire Protection District.

A pavilion for concerts and other cultural events would serve as the centerpiece of the walking path, an element Brosig hopes would attract a wider audience.

"In some ways, this is something that can maybe blow Ravinia away in that we're offering culture for free," Brosig said.

While officials praised the plans, it's unclear how or when the village would go about putting the ideas into motion. There are no funding sources earmarked for the project and no timetable for when any sort of construction could begin.

"Is this an ambitious plan? Absolutely," Trustee Glen Vade Bon Coeur said. "Is it something we can accomplish in the next two years? Probably not."

Trustees said Thursday they hope to eventually schedule a town hall meeting to solicit ideas from the community on how to proceed with the riverwalk plans.