Island Park in Geneva to close in June for bridge work

You will be able to enjoy Island Park in Geneva a few more months before it is closed for bridge replacement.

The Geneva Park District announced Monday that the park will be closed June 15. Construction is expected to conclude late in the fall.

The Fox River Trail, which runs through the park, will be closed June 12.

Trail users will be sent on a detour over the pedestrian/bicycle bridge over the Fox River at the south end of the park, then to River Lane, north on River to State Street (Route 38), over the State bridge to the traffic light at Route 25, and then pick up the path again on the north side of the bridge.

A map of the detour is available at genevaparks.org.

Besides replacing the 81-year-old concrete bridge on the north end of the park, the park district will do other work. Officials intend to replace playground equipment and add a zip line; remove unhealthy ash trees; and make repairs and improvements to the pavilion and its overlook area, where summertime concerts are usually held.

This year, the Concert in the Park series will move to Sunset Park on Western Avenue.

The only time Island Park will open this summer is for the Fox Valley Folk Festival, Sept. 2 and 3.

The design for the new bridge includes a wider deck, and lookouts on each side for people to admire the park and the river without disrupting bicycle and pedestrian traffic on the trail.

“This project is extremely important to the community and to the Geneva Park District. This bridge is a vital link to the 100-plus-mile-long Fox River Trail network and a critical point near the confluence of the Fox River Trail and the Illinois Prairie Path,” said Sheavoun Lambillotte, the district’s executive director, in a prepared statement. “To keep everyone’s safety a priority, we feel rerouting the Fox River Trail is essential.”