Ottawa receives $506,000 grant for Allen Park facelift

It’ll be good for both the residents and for tourism.

—  Ottawa Commissioner Marla Pearson

Ottawa residents can look forward to an enhanced Allen Park in the future after Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources selected the city’s application for a $506,000 Open Space Land Acquisition Development grant.

The project will cost a total of $1,012,000 with the state’s half of the funding and Ottawa’s matching half.

“I’m super happy that we received the grant again,” said Commissioner Marla Pearson. “I didn’t know if we’d get it this soon after the Thornton Park project.”

Pearson said the OSLAD grant for Thornton Park required a trip to Springfield so representatives from Ottawa could present their plan for the park. This time, Ottawa received funding for the project without anything additional required.

Enhancements to the park include a paved 1/4-mile looped walking trail along the banks of the Illinois River, which also will provide access to several existing shelters and gaming areas on the main level of the park. Gaming areas will include chess and checkers tables, a ping pong table and four bag toss stations.

Improvements in the upper area of the park include a new playground and hillside play space that will have a poured-in-place rubber surface, and there also will be a shelter and bench swings.

There will be signage educating residents about the Illinois River, plants and pollinators similar to the signage surrounding the walkways at Thornton Park.

“With all the waterfront development occurring on one side and Allen Park getting renovated on the other side, it’ll be really good for Ottawa,” Pearson said. “It’ll be good for both the residents and for tourism.”

Ottawa is one of 118 municipalities to receive a part of the $60 million set aside for these grants.

Pearson hopes there will be an agenda item regarding the grant at the 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 21, City Council meeting at City Hall, 301 W. Madison St.