At a special meeting of the Wheaton Park District Board of Directors on March 2, a bid proposal for dredging of the Northside Park Lagoon was accepted from Earthwerks Land Improvement and Development Corporation of Batavia, Illinois. The project will increase the depth of the water from the existing average of 12" to 18" deep to an average of 5' to 6' deep with a couple of 10' deep areas to benefit aquatic species. Once completed, the lagoon will be much better for boating and fishing as well as improving water quality.

Originally this work was expected to use a hydraulic dredging process that would take between three and seven years and involve drying the removed sediment in large bags over several months. These bags would have taken up open space while drying prior to the material being trucked off site when it was ready. Earthwerks submitted a voluntary alternate that will use a unique floating excavator to remove the sediment and allow the project to be completed in the next few months.

This process will require driving through a few sections of the new shoreline which will be replaced when the work is done. It will also result in a substantial amount of truck traffic during the short duration of the project from late March through early June. This traffic will follow West Street to Harrison and then northwest on Gary Avenue (see map). It is hoped that these will be minor inconveniences in light of the time and money that is being saved with this method.

Additional information about this project is available at www.wheatonparkdistrict.com or by contacting Executive Director Michael Benard,  630.510.4945 or mbenard@wheatonparks.org