Federal funds awarded for land near Maramech Forest Preserve

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has awarded the Kendall County Forest Preserve District federal grant funds toward the purchase of land adjacent to Little Rock Creek and the Maramech Forest Preserve near Plano, officials said this week.

The state announced a $750,000 grant for the purchase of 134 acres along the Little Rock Creek corridor, as part of a statewide $3.6 million federal grant disbursement. The land is adjacent to the 92-acre Maramech Forest Preserve, an Illinois Dedicated Nature Preserve.

David Guritz, the forest preserve district's executive director, said the district is pursuing plans for the potential acquisition of the property.

"The District and The Conservation Foundation were approached in 2016 by the property owner(s) to determine interest for acquiring the property, and a concept plan was developed for the purchase of approximately 134-acres connected to Maramech Forest Preserve," Guritz said via email. "As part of this effort, The Conservation Foundation and District have been working to pursue funding that would be required for the potential acquisition."

Guritz said the grant is "an important first step towards securing the funding needed to acquire the property."

"Funds awarded under the Land and Water Conservation Fund grant program require a direct one-to-one match," he said.

Guritz said the property does not include Maramech Hill, which he said is located on private property and is "not publicly accessible without landowner permission and consent."

Guritz said the Little Rock Creek corridor includes 26 fish species, and that protection of the creek corridor is "essential to maintain the hydrology which supports these and other cold-water fish species."

"This area is unique in that it meets numerous county-wide acquisition priorities, preserves an important section of Little Rock Creek, adjoins to a regionally significant nature preserve area, and expands conservation lands around the Silver Springs State Park macrosite," Guritz wrote. "The property shares some of the same mesic and dry-mesic upland forest communities as Maramech Woods, and it would also serve to buffer the Nature Preserve, furthering its long-term protection and sustainability."

Guritz said plans for the site would be for "resource-based conservation and passive recreation, with habitat protection and enhancement."

According to the IDNR, the site will include parking, a shelter, interpretive trails with overlooks, and signs.