$50M Forest Preserve Bond Issue Includes Bolingbrook Trail Project

BOLINGBROOK, IL — A project in Bolingbrook will be included in the $50 million general obligation bond issue that the Forest Preserve Board of Commissioners approved on June 13.

The forest preserve said that bond sale proceeds will be used to fund a 2025-2030 Capital Improvement Program that will allow the District to preserve more green space for future generations and add access to open areas.

The bond issue will provide $25 million for land preservation, $12 million for critical regional and local trail connections and the creation of new preserve access areas, and $13 million for habitat restoration. The interest rate for the bonds can’t exceed 5.5 percent and the bonds will be repaid over 20 years.

Proceeds from the bond sale will be used for a variety of projects, including a trail connection project in Bolingbrook.

$5 million will be used for the DuPage River Trail - Weber Road Connection in 2026, according to the release from the preserve. The DuPage River Trail segments north and south of the river will be connected.

The new path will be constructed on property owned by the City of Naperville east of Weber Road. The path will connect trail systems in the City of Naperville and the Village of Bolingbrook as well as the Forest Preserve’s Whalon Lake Preserve and Hidden Oaks Preserve including Hidden Lakes Trout Farm. Engineering has been initiated, and this project requires a 20 percent local match.

The amount of money property owners will pay in taxes in 2025 for the Forest Preserve District’s portion of their tax bill – which is around 1.5 percent of their total bills – will not increase as a result of the bond sale and the total will decrease from taxes paid in 2024, according to the preserve.

The District waited until past bond issues were retired to propose the new bond issue, so the tax rate would not increase.