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Governor Ryan Awards Snowmobile Trail Grants
SPRINGFIELD -- Governor George H. Ryan today awarded snowmobile trail grants totaling $94,100 to two local governments and six private snowmobile organizations to develop and maintain public snowmobile trails in Illinois.
"These grants will be used to purchase additional snowmobile trail grooming and maintenance equipment, renovate existing equipment, post additional trail signs, and repair snowmobile bridges in ten northern Illinois counties," Ryan said.
The ten counties that will benefit from the additional signs, improved trails and new bridges are Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside and Winnebago counties.
The grants are administered by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Application forms for the next round of grants are available by contacting the IDNR Division of Grant Administration, Room 315, 524 South Second Street, Springfield, IL, 62701-1787 or by calling 217/782-7481, TDD 217/782-9175, Ameritech Relay 800/526-0844. Applications are accepted March 1-May 1.
Attached is a list of grant recipients:
FY 2000 SNOWMOBILE TRAIL GRANT RECIPIENTS
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
Lake County Forest Preserve District, $7,000 to replace deteriorated tracks on a 1988 groomer used to maintain 25 miles of snowmobile trails. (Local contact: Bob Scherer, 847/526-7622).
Oregon Park District (Ogle County), $13,000 to purchase a 6 x 6 all-terrain utility machine with trail groomer attachments. The unit will be used by the Park District and the Black Hawk Snowblazers Club to assist with trail development and maintenance, helping prepare and maintain over 100 miles of public snowmobile trails. (Local contact: Jim Grove, 815/732-3101).
SNOWMOBILE CLUBS
German Valley Sno-Riders (Stephenson, Winnebago and Ogle counties), $6,700, to purchase an eight-foot trail groomer drag to help maintain 84 miles of public snowmobile trails. (Local contact: Adrian Book, 815/738-2422).
Northwest Illinois Snowmobile Alliance (Stephenson & Jo Daviess counties), $20,200 to purchase an eight-foot trail groomer drag, a mower, and a seven-foot blade and to lease a 70 horsepower agricultural tractor. The implements will be used with the tractor to prepare trails (including the 14.5-mile Jane Addams Trail) for snowmobiling by mowing and shaping the trails prior to snowfall and for grooming and maintenance during the snowmobiling season. (Local contact: Harvey Schroeder, 815/772-3980).
Northwest Illinois Snowmobile Alliance (Stephenson, Jo Daviess, Carroll and Whiteside counties,) $30,800 to purchase trail signs, posts, lumber for bridges and gates to be used along the snowmobile trails they maintain in the four counties. (Local contact: Harvey Schroeder, 815/772-3980).
REGION 5 ILLINOIS ASSOCIATION OF SNOWMOBILE CLUBS (DeKalb & Kane counties,) $5,000 to purchase a new trailer to transport their trail groomer. The current trailer does not have an adequate gross vehicle weight rating for the groomer. (Local contact: Joe Miller, 815/759-5633).
REGION 6 ILLINOIS ASSOCIATION OF SNOWMOBILE CLUBS (Jo Daviess County), $8,600 to for lumber and materials to replace five snowmobile bridges destroyed by flooding earlier this year. (Local contact: Paul Wienen, 815/777-9623).
SPRING GROVE SNO-GROVERS (McHenry County), $2,800 for signs to better mark their 17 miles of snowmobile trails and for lumber and materials to rebuild three bridges that cross small streams. (Local contact: Dan Tybon, 630/616-3655).
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