Part of Prairie Trail closed in Algonquin through May

A half-mile section of the Prairie Trail in Algonquin will be closed through May as the McHenry County Conservation District works to stabilize the trail and address stream erosion.

The closed section sits north of the Meyer Road parking lot, which will also be closed during the project, and the access trail from the neighborhood off Grace Street will also be impacted, limiting north- and southbound access.

No through traffic will be permitted and a detour was not possible due to limited access to the trail from this area and the highly trafficked roadways nearby, the conservation district said in a news release.

The Prairie Trail travels 25.5 miles from the Kane County border to just short of the Wisconsin State Line, connecting eight McHenry County communities along the way.

—  McHenry County Conservation District

The first public parking access on the north end is by Diverse City Prairie, at Eastgate and Commercial Road, west of Main Street, or the village of Algonquin’s Towne Park lot at 100 Jefferson St.

This section of the Prairie Trail has long been under “critical watch” because a tributary of Crystal Creek that runs next to the trail has caused “severe erosion” in multiple areas, the conservation district said.

Work will include replacing culverts, removing brush, redirecting the tributary so it moves through a more winding path, adding native vegetation on the west side of the trail, creating a drainage ditch on the east side, and resurfacing the asphalt, according to a district spokesperson and the release.

Updates on the project and a map of the project area can be found on the conservation district’s website at MCCD.me/Bike.