New Haligus Road Park in Lakewood due to be completed this year; Della Park in Crystal Lake gets grant

The new Haligus Road Park in Lakewood is expected to break ground this year and will be completed by next spring, while Della Street Park in Crystal Lake will get major upgrades after securing a grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

“It’s going to be a fast-track project,” said Amy Olson, Crystal Lake Park District manager of park planning and development.

Bids for the project are expected to go out next month, and the park district aims to start construction in May, Olson said.

The park, which is projected to cost about $4.6 million, will be located south of the village of Lakewood Public Works facility.

Multiple grants helped fund the new park, including a $600,000 grant from the Open Space Land Acquisition and Development last year. A $162,000 grant from GameTime, Cunningham Recreation and the Illinois Park and Recreation Association also was awarded last fall that will help fund equipment for two playgrounds.

A pickle ball court, two shelters, a splash pad, basketball courts, soccer fields, a hammock area, a pollinator garden, a walking trail and a small amphitheater all are planned for the new park, Olson said.

“It’s a community park. It’s not a little, tiny park. It’s a big one,” Olson said.

Two playgrounds will cater to different age groups; one will be for kids ages 2 to 5, and the other will be geared toward kids ages 5 to 12. Each playground will have Americans with Disabilities Act-accessible features, including a merry-go-round and chair swings, Olson said.

A “substantial” part of the 10-acre park will be reserved for the wetlands in order to stay environmentally friendly for the Kishwaukee River, Olson said.

Just a bit north of Haligus Park is Della Street Park, located at 5 Della St. in Crystal Lake. It will be getting a major makeover after receiving a $329,000 grant from the same open space organization.

Olson applied for the grant in hopes of expanding the park and adding more features.

“We could do so much more here because the community doesn’t have anything close by,” she said.

The park district proposed adding a new playground, a picnic shelter, a game table, a bags game area, a sitting area with limestone blocks and an “exercise challenge course,” Olson said.

The neighborhood park, which is about a half-acre in size, will get completely new playground equipment. The current playground is about 15 years old, Olson said.

“It has received quite a bit of heavy wear,” she said.

A popular ask from residents was to build a bridge over the nearby Kishwaukee River, but that area of land is privately owned, which prohibits the park district from building anything there, Olson said.

Construction for Della Street Park is expected to start next year after construction plans are finalized this year, Olson said.