Illinois Mixed Bag: OSLAD program part of 55 million in grants

Springfield — More than $55.2 million in grant funding was awarded to 100 local park projects throughout Illinois to help communities acquire land and develop recreational opportunities.

For the third year in a row, the governor ensured funding was set aside for economically distressed communities, resulting in 29 underserved locations receiving $17.3 million in grants from the Open Space Land Acquisition and Development, or OSLAD, program.

Established by the Illinois General Assembly in 1986, OSLAD is a cost-sharing program between state and local governments that helps communities fund land acquisition and development for parks and outdoor recreation projects.

“This round of OSLAD grants represents long-awaited projects from the smallest villages of rural Illinois to Chicago and the suburbs,” said DNR Director Natalie Phelps Finnie. “There is an impressive amount of work, creativity, and ambition that goes into planning new outdoor recreational facilities, and I’m delighted the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is able to play a small part in helping communities thrive.”

For a list of grant recipients, visit the DNR website.

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Pritzker Lauds Carp Project Construction

Springfield — The Brandon Road Interbasin Project on the Illinois River near Joliet took a significant step forward with the first construction contract awarded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District, on Nov. 27.

Brandon Road is a federal project, and together Illinois and Michigan serve as the non-federal sponsors. This initial construction contract is for the first of three construction increments for the estimated $1.15 billion project designed to prevent the upstream movement of invasive carp into the Great Lakes.

“Awarding the first construction contract is an exciting and important step forward for this long-anticipated project,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The Great Lakes are a priceless natural resource and a vital economic engine for the nation. Protecting them for future generations will always be a priority for the State of Illinois.”

The Brandon Road Lock and Dam has been identified as the critical pinch point where layered technologies could be used to stop invasive carp populations from moving into the Great Lakes. The Brandon Road project will implement a complex series of innovative deterrents at the lock and dam site to prevent the upstream movement of invasive carp and other aquatic nuisance species on the Illinois Waterway.

Experts from DNR’s  offices of water resources, capital planning, and fisheries have worked closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the preconstruction, engineering, and design phases of the project, which started in December 2020. In addition, design efforts were recently initiated by the State of Illinois and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers related to capital and operational improvements proposed for the Jake Wolf Memorial Fish Hatchery in Mason County to balance upstream aquatic impacts of the project on the Des Plaines River as required by the start of construction..

Illinois’ Most Famous Alligator Has Grown Up

Chicago — Chance the Snapper, an American alligator who became a citywide sensation in the summer of 2019 when he was spotted swimming in the Humboldt Park lagoon, is now assisting in cancer research at the Wise Laboratory of Environmental and Genetic Toxicology at the University of Louisville.

Frank Robb, the alligator expert who caught Chance after he evaded Chicago Animal Care and Control teams and DNR Conservation Police for days, said the Wise Lab examines how chemicals in the environment cause cancer.

One study examines DNA damage in alligators from chemicals in the environment, to help better understand threats to humans.

“Alligators have the same endocrine system and reproductive hormones we do,” Robb said. “Alligators are really good at treating these things, and not getting cancer, and repairing chromosomes. So we’re trying to figure all this out.”

Robb also said Chance is beefing up. He measured about 4 feet long when he was caught in the Humboldt Park Lagoon. Five years later, he’s now more than 7 feet long, weighs 140 pounds, and reportedly is “the biggest and baddest” gator at his new home at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park in Florida.

Matthiessen Approaches Attendance Record

Utica, Ill. — Visitors flocked to Matthiessen State Park in 2024, filling the parking lots and smashing attendance records along the way. Nearby Starved Rock State Park has typically been the top attraction.

But Matthiessen is on the cusp of a yearly attendance record. Through Nov. 30, Matthiessen welcomed a running total of nearly 530,000 visitors – already Matthiessen’s second-best year on record. If Matthiessen outdraws its December average of 12,244, then New Year’s glasses will be raised to Matthiessen’s best-ever year.

A record 544,715 visitors visited the park in 2017.

This year’s total was the result of good weather, sunflowers and fall foliage. Matthiessen broke monthly records in May, June, October and very nearly in March. Only in July did Matthiessen attendance slip below its monthly average.

Spring Turkey Permit Applications Accepted

Springfield — Permit applications for the Illinois 2025 spring turkey hunting season are being accepted, with three separate lotteries scheduled to determine hunter seasons and dates. Lottery 1 closed Dec. 1, but Lottery 2 opened to all hunters on Dec. 12 and runs through Jan. 13. Lottery 3 will be open to all hunters beginning Jan. 24 and runs through Feb. 10.

The deadline for landowner permit applications is Feb. 9. Permits remaining after the Lottery 3 drawing will be available over the counter from license vendors throughout the state on a first-come, first-served basis beginning March 11.