Although the Village of Mahomet has complied with the requirements set forth by the Open Space Land Acquisition Development grant for 20 years, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources expects the Village to update the Sangamon River Greenway to adhere to current ADA standards.
IDNR said the Village will not receive additional grant funds from them until this project is completed.
The Village acquired 32.44 acres of land near the Sangamon River with the OSLAD grant in 1994. Access to the space currently includes eight gravel parking spaces.
The Village has submitted inspection reports once every five years for the last 20 years. Until now, they have not received negative feedback from IDNR.
In order to bring the Sangamon River Greenway paths up to ADA standards, the Village will have to provide at least one ADA parking spot in the lot just north of the Sangamon River off of IL-47 South. They will also need to create at least 750 feet of multi-purpose pathway from the parking lot into the acreage.
Mahomet Parks and Recreation Director Dan Waldinger expects this update will cost the Village between $10,000 to $20,000. He asked the Village board to approve this last minute addition to next year’s fiscal budget, which is slated to be voted on Tuesday.
Although Village board members and staff were surprised by the demand of IDNR, Waldinger said this addition will eventually become part of the path system which will connect the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve to the Riverbend Forest Preserve.
“It is an important part of the big picture,” Waldinger said. “Although this is being pushed on us, it is critical to the overall segment.”
The Village plans to work with the Riverwalk sub-committee to develop interpretative signage along the Sangamon River Greenway. The Riverwalk committee believes the extension of multi-purpose pathways along with Sangamon River will provide education and recreational opportunities for the public.
