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Kane County reports progress on Fabulous Fox National Water Trail: signage, ARPA funds and five new access sites planned
Summary
Staff briefed the Energy and Environmental Committee on the Fabulous Fox National Water Trail: national designation, ongoing marketing, ARPA and state grants, new access-site engineering and planned construction at five sites; staff also described permits and contractors and answered questions about signage and river impacts.
Karen Miller, a Kane County staff member who leads the Fabulous Fox Water Trail work, updated the Energy and Environmental Committee on March 14 about implementation steps after the trail’s designation by the National Park Service.
Miller said the water trail spans about 58 miles, crosses two states and eight counties, and that the county secured national recognition after a lengthy volunteer-driven application and mapping process. The trail’s county work is funded in part with $1,200,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money and additional grants from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Miller said: a $270,000 tourism-and-attractions grant already awarded and a $100,000 application submitted and pending.
Nut graf: The county is moving from planning to construction and marketing: it has installed access-site signage required for the national designation, contracted for engineering and construction of five universal‑design access sites, and is piloting solar‑powered digital wayfinding (“SUFA”) signs to provide real‑time river gauges and community information.
Miller said Hay & Associates prepared engineering work for five selected sites in Kane County — Carpentersville, East Dundee, South Elgin, Montgomery and Batavia — and that the county selected Earthworks as contractor and BoardSafe to construct docks. The county is awaiting permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources before construction can begin.
“We are ready to do construction whenever those permits come through,” Miller told the committee, adding that, if approved, some work could be completed this paddling season.
The program includes a marketing and visitor‑information component. Miller said the county contracted with Gilmore Marketing Concepts for branding, digital advertising, printed brochures, promotional merchandise and social media; she said the county ran radio and streaming campaigns last year and plans bus‑rear advertising in June.
Signage and public reaction drew several questions. Miller said the SUFA signs are solar powered, can display real‑time widgets (for example, National Weather Service alerts or U.S. Geological Survey river gauges), and are designed to be bolted to concrete pads. One committee member estimated a SUFA program cost at about $103,000 for 12 units; Miller said any community cost-sharing would be discussed and the county would seek state grant support.
Not all speakers supported bright digital signs near the river. Committee member Mavis Bates said she treasures natural river spaces and urged careful placement; another member cautioned that signs be placed where they would support local downtowns and economic partners rather than intrude on quiet river sections.
Miller outlined a community event tied to the trail: an inaugural paddle-and-festival called "El Cardunal" (the name formed from Elgin, Carpentersville, Dundee and Algonquin) planned for June 22, with a capped participant list and safety and volunteer support from local partners, Friends of the Fox and area municipalities.
Ending: Miller said the county will send committee members the jobs-committee materials that list project costs and that staff will return with construction updates after permits and contracting milestones are complete.
