Lake County forest preserves to add ‘important pieces’ with $3 million in land purchases
The Lake County forest preserve’s holdings are set to expand by about 85 acres with two pending acquisitions that will cost about $3 million.
They’re the latest properties in the district’s continuing land acquisition program. Over the past two years, the forest board has approved 23 purchases totaling more than 831 acres.
“It’s a matter of getting the important pieces and that’s what we’ve been focusing on,” said Ken Jones, the district’s director of land preservation. “We’ve been very, very busy and we’ve got a lot more that’s underway.”
The first of the pending acquisitions, called the AYAE property, is about 10.3 acres on Milton Road in Fremont Township. It’s planned as an addition to Lakewood Forest Preserve near Wauconda, the largest preserve in the system at 3,010 acres. The purchase price is $600,000.
Forest preserve district staff also has recommended the purchase of 75 acres known as the Ruhl Property on Edwards Road in far northern Lake County. It will be an addition to Pine Dunes Forest Preserve and cost about $2.43 million.
Though much smaller, the AYAE property on Milton Road near Old McHenry Road is important because it’s wrapped on two sides by district land, Jones explained.
“More important is the potential for a trail connection we can make at Milton Road,” he said. “This is an important addition for us to do things right now we can’t do.”
Having the property makes it possible to have a new route for a planned multiuse trail that would be separate from equestrian trails in the area, he added.
Jones said the district has been working on the Ruhl acquisition for more than a year and a half. It drains into district property and will allow for better water quality and control when the regional Millennium Trail in that area is built.
The property is being farmed and includes a home, barn, Quonset hut and related buildings. They will be inspected after closing and, if they can’t be used for district purposes, demolished. Farming will continue for the next few years.
The forest board’s planning committee on Monday recommended approval of the land purchases, considered important for meeting the district’s goals. Those include protecting wildlife habitat, preserving wetlands, providing scenic vistas, adding to existing preserves and protecting existing district holdings.
Continuing land acquisitions have been made possible in part by overwhelming voter approval in November 2024 of $155 million in borrowing.
According to the district, $65 million is designated for land acquisition; $30 million for habitat restoration; and $60 million to build trail connections, redevelop or open preserves, address maintenance needs and improve energy efficiency.
The full forest board is expected to approve the purchases at its Nov. 11 meeting.
mzawislak@dailyherald.com