Years of advocacy have paid off! Livable Lake County, the local Sierra Club-led campaign to stop the Rt. 53 Tollway Extension and protect the greenway, and the Green Corridor Coalition are elated to announce that the Illinois General Assembly passed the state's Fiscal Year 2025 budget—which includes $1 million to prepare a master land use plan for the greenway.
The greenway is a beautiful 12-mile stretch of largely undeveloped land in central Lake County that had been earmarked for the now-defunct Rt. 53 Tollway Extension.
The $1 million allocation to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) will cover initial collaboration on the character of the site and the additional investment needed to prepare it for public access.
Support at Multiple Levels
In budgeting money for the 1,000-acre conservation project, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration embraced the findings of a 2022 state task force.
The Lake County Board, in 2023, voted resoundingly for a resolution supporting the greenway.
Many thanks to Gov. Pritzker and to elected officials at state, county, and municipal levels who helped make this important milestone a reality! We look forward to working with the IDNR, local governments, and communities along the corridor to protect this regionally significant landscape and to create an amenity for all to enjoy.
A special thanks to our partners in the Green Corridor Coalition: Friends of Indian Creek Wetlands, Lake County Audubon Society, Midwest Sustainability Group, and Openlands.
Important Next Step
To ensure roadbuilders can never touch the greenway, the Green Corridor Coalition is collecting signatures to request the State of Illinois transfer ownership of state-owned parcels of the greenway to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Will you help us protect the greenway forever?