Programs and facilities at the Cook County Forest Preserve District in River Forest will be upgraded next year as part of a multi-million-dollar effort by the agency to improve its offerings.
At the popular Hal Tyrrell Trailside Museum at Thatcher and Chicago avenues, vegetation will be cleared to make way for a new foot path from the back parking lot to an entrance. The entry way also will get new landscaping.
“You don’t know the museum is there from the parking lot,” said Chris Slattery, the district’s director of planning and development. “It will look more like the major entry to the museum (off of Thatcher Avenue).”
In the front, a stone circular ring will be installed that will serve as an outdoor classroom and a gathering place for hikers. A new crosswalk across Chicago Avenue will allow for safer passage from the museum to the pavilion and meadow at Thatcher Woods.
“We’re going to improve the paths with more way-finding and signage so that hikers will know there’s a one-mile loop walk around to the pavilion,” she said.
At the pavilion, lights will be installed in the parking lot and around the building. The patio, meanwhile, will be upgraded with a fire pit and other amenities while the pavilion is being readied for evening and year-around use. When those upgrades are completed, films and other programs could be offered.
Air conditioning, heat, restrooms and a warming kitchen already have been added inside the 1930s-era building so it can be rented for private events. The building is also handicapped accessible.
New landscaping will be added at the main headquarters at Lake Street and Harlem Avenue. The power will also be boosted there at the band shell for concerts and programs. A corner building under the archway is slated for renovation so visitors can learn about programs or pick up maps, brochures and snacks.
“We’re going to make it function more like a visitor’s center,” Slattery said. “It’s a tiny building and it’s not recognized as a building, but it will be almost like a Metra center.
In a wild-natural area off of Bonnie Brae, a small path and interpretative signs will be installed for people who might not know about the native plants there, Slattery said. The overriding theme of all these projects, she stressed, was to introduce new people to the preserves as the agency begins the kick-off of its centennial.
The forest preserve district manages more than 68,000 acres of open space.