Some Illinois walking trails built on old railroad tracks are providing more than recreational outlets. The sites are generating ideas for business development and growth.
Trails of the Grand Prairie is part of a coalition of nonprofits and government agencies to create an expansive rail trail network across Illinois. Board chair Joe Yockey said the sites are great for watching nature, jogging, or dog walking, but the group has other goals in mind, including "developing recreational trails for a regional trail network in central and east central Illinois, taking old corridors and enhancing the natural resources along these trails. We want to enhance the vegetation and restore [the] Illinois prairie and Oak Savannah prairie ecosystem."
He said the trails also serve as community connectors for the surrounding neighborhoods for students at St. Joe Austin or Mohammed Seymour high schools to ride their bikes. And the organization is considering future plans for a trail that will connect the DeLand-Weldon Elementary School.
The organization recognizes the trails’ economic development opportunities. An old fire station was purchased recently to be transformed into the Oakwood Coffee Shop and Bunk House, with lodging and a conversation spot. When out-of-town cyclists spend a couple of days in small communities near the trails, Yockey said, they seek out these services.
He said he hopes residents will support Trails of the Grand Prairie’s vision.
"And it's a real opportunity for these small towns to host visitors and benefit economically," he said. "We want to model that in our first trail system, the Kickapoo Rail Trail, because these small towns don't have a tourist hospitality culture."
In 2024, a study was conducted to determine the best route to extend the Kickapoo Rail Trail from the Vermillion County Fairgrounds into Danville. It evaluated such factors as property ownership, destinations, accessibility for people with disabilities, surrounding land use, user safety, and connectivity to trail networks.
The Illinois News Connection originally published this story.
