Facelift at Pontiac-area park includes new pickleball courts, new playground equipment

Erich Murphy, Pontiac Daily Leader
·2 min read

Renfrew Park in Dwight will be getting a facelift with the help of a healthy grant.

The Illinois Department of Natural resources and Gov. JB Pritzker announced recently that a number of communities in Illinois will be receiving grant money totaling $54.9 million. Included in the list of recipients is the Village of Dwight.

The Open Space Land Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grants are being made available to 111 local park projects in the state. Included in the awards is $600,000 to Dwight.

The playground equipment at Renfrew Park in Dwight is scheduled to replaced by new equipment with the help of an OSLAD Grant the village will be receiving.
The playground equipment at Renfrew Park in Dwight is scheduled to replaced by new equipment with the help of an OSLAD Grant the village will be receiving.

“We are adding two pickleball courts, we are updating one of our tennis courts and in the southeast corner, we are removing the old playground equipment and putting brand new playground equipment in the spot," said Village Administrator Crissy Livingston. "There will be a new pavilion, along with a fitness pod area.

Livingston said that the village has worked with Hitchcock Design Group of Naperville in creating a comprehensive plan for Renfrew Park. This is Phase I of the plan for making the space usable more efficiently, Livingston said.

Livingston noted that the estimated project cost is in the neighborhood of $750,000-$800,000. The OSLAD grant will cover $600,000. Because Dwight is designated as a “distressed community” for the purposes of the grant, the village was not required to create a dollar-for-dollar match.

“We are beyond excited — myself, the mayor, the board and I think even our residents, too,” Livingston said. “It's just an exciting time for the village that we were selected as one of the 111 recipients of the OSLAD grant. This grant will help with the upgrades to the park and is a step in the right direction in making our parks a place where people can come together and spend time together."

Livingston also said that it has been a decade or longer since there has been serious park improvements have been made.

According to a press release, “These awards mark the 37th year of the OSLAD Grant program, administered by the Illinois Department of National Resources, which provides assistance to local government agencies for acquisition or development of land for creating or expanding outdoor recreational opportunities throughout communities in Illinois.”

An overhead view of Renfrew Park in Dwight showing where improvements are scheduled to be made. The Village of Dwight was recently named as a recipient of an OSLAD Grant in the amount of $600,000 to make the improvements.
An overhead view of Renfrew Park in Dwight showing where improvements are scheduled to be made. The Village of Dwight was recently named as a recipient of an OSLAD Grant in the amount of $600,000 to make the improvements.

This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: Dwight park getting a facelift after village receives $600,000 grant