Help plan party for Des Plaines River Trail
The long-awaited final piece of the Des Plaines River Trail is expected to be completed in 2015 - and Lake County Forest Preserve District officials want the public to help them celebrate.
The district has launched a website, ideaexchangelcfpd.org, that encourages people to suggest ideas for the event that will mark the project's end.
Officials also are soliciting responses on social media at facebook.com/lcfpd.
"This is the public's land and many people have waited a long time to be able to finish hiking and biking the trail without interruption," said Linda Carlstone, a marketing specialist with the district. "So it's the people's chance to celebrate. What better way than to get in on the party-planning ground floor?"
The Des Plaines River Trail is one of the longest-running projects in the district's history. Running some 33 miles between Wheeling and Wadsworth, it's been built in stages over more than 30 years.
And the last gap - a 1,500-foot strip near the Par King Skill Golf course in the Lincolnshire area - soon will be filled in. The district purchased the necessary land earlier this year.
As for the party planning, the online campaign launched this week. So far, people have suggested three ideas through the Idea Exchange website and six through Facebook, Carlstone face.
They've been serious, funny and somewhere in between, she said.
One person suggested a daylong hiking activity. Another suggested giving out trail mix.
"The public can offer a different perspective and open the planner's eyes to something new," Carlstone said.
The responses will be considered by the district employees planning the bash.
"The forest preserves will have budget and staffing limits, of course," Carlstone said.
The Idea Exchange site will stop taking suggestions Jan. 31. But public ideas will be welcomed on Facebook and in person "any time leading up to the event," Carlstone said.