Round Lake Area Park District adding soccer fields

A land purchase that has been years in the making will result in new soccer fields and other amenities for the Round Lake Area Park District.

Six acres will be added to the district's sports center complex in Round Lake Beach, a site most recently used by the village to dispose of material dredged from Round Lake channel.

"We get to add to the outdoor sports area," explained Jeff Nehila, executive director.

"We eventually will have two more regulation soccer fields, one to two T-ball fields, a playground and a shelter. Those are our long-range hopes for development."

The park board agreed to buy the parcel Dec. 10 and closed on the property Dec. 16. The district has been awarded an open space grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for half the $390,000 acquisition cost of what will be known as Sports Center Park.

Nehila said the property originally was owned by Round Lake Area Unit School District 116, which sold it to the village. Dredged materials were pumped about a mile to be contained at that location.

Then, the Corporation for Openlands, a conservation group, acquired the property, a detail that allowed the park district to apply for the state open space grant.

The district had leased the property since 2008. It has been capped with topsoil and grass has been planted.

Though the soccer fields won't be at the competitive level, the area will be available for practice and general use in 2010, Nehila said. It will increase the number of fields at that location to three.

Nehila said a bike path connecting Hook Lake to the sports center path also will be reopened.

The past year has been busy for the district.

Its 13-acre Lakewood Grove neighborhood park on Route 60 across the street from the Lakewood homes subdivision is substantially complete with an official grand opening in April or May.

The district also completed a nature trail of just under a mile at Long Lake Park.