KANKAKEE – Nearly a million dollars in park development project funds are coming countywide.
The City of Kankakee received word from the State of Illinois Wednesday it would receive $600,000 in Open Space Land Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grants that can go towards land acquisition and development for parks and outdoor recreation projects.
The announcement came as Governor J.B. Pritzker and Illinois Department of Natural Resources (DNR) today announced nearly $60 million in state grants awarded for 118 local park projects throughout Illinois to help communities acquire land and develop recreational opportunities.
“Today, I couldn’t be prouder to announce that IDNR’s OSLAD program is offering the largest round of grants in the history of the program — nearly $60 million,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The health and wellbeing of Illinoisans sits at the heart of the OSLAD program, and for the first time ever, we’ve been able to provide 100% of funding assistance to qualifying distressed recipients.”
It marked the first time in the grant program’s 36-year history 100% of eligible projects in economically distressed communities will be funded, of which includes Kankakee.
Additionally, the Kankakee River Valley Forest Preserve District will receive $207,750 in grants under the program, making for a total of $807,750 in park development funding in the Kankakee area.
Other grants locally included nearly $4 million in funding going to communities in Will County split between the villages of Monee, Plainfield, University Park, New Lenox, Shorewood, Channahon, and Oswego.
