DuPage River Should Be Open For Public Use: Plainfield Park Board

PLAINFIELD, IL — The Plainfield Park District Board of Commissioners has come out in support of maintaining public access to and use of DuPage River.

The Board passed a resolution at its Aug. 11 meeting stating that it maintains "the position that normal and lawful use of the DuPage River by the public cannot be denied by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), any other agency of the State of Illinois, or any other unit of local government."

By doing so, members of the Park Board added themselves to the chorus of local and state officials, including State Sens. Laure Ellman and Meg Loughran-Cappel, who have voiced support for public access to the river.

In its resolution, the Park Board requested that the IDNR articulate what it called the "clear and correct position" that it is not "attempting to limit, and will not limit, normal and lawful recreational activities on the DuPage River."

Use of DuPage River has been in question since July, when homeowners with properties along the river began filing complaints that people have been exiting tubes to swim in water that's technically private property, since some property lines extend into the water.

Some complaints cite Plainfield River Tubing, a tube rental company started by two village residents at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, while others refer to an increase of garbage in the river.

The full resolution can be found here.