St. Charles is moving to fix what city officials describe as a very unsafe stretch of road near one of its busiest recreational hubs. The City Council voted unanimously on September 21 to commit $590,380 in local matching funds toward a state grant application for a new bike and pedestrian pathway linking James O. Breen Community Park and Otter Cove Aquatic Park along Campton Hills Road.
The proposed path would run along Campton Hills Road between Peck Road and Oak Street, according to reporting by Shaw Local. The corridor would give neighborhood families a safer route to the park, the aquatic center, the post office and nearby local businesses. City staff have already completed preliminary engineering work on the project, positioning it to compete for Cycle 17 funding under the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program, according to the City of St. Charles.
A State Grant Application
St. Charles is pursuing state grant funding for the Campton Hills Road path through the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program. The City Council committed $590,380 in local matching funds toward the grant application.
Public Works Manager Chris Gottlieb presented the funding resolution to the council, and city officials say the completed Phase 1 engineering work substantially improves how the project scores under state grant guidelines. State grant recipients are expected to be announced in early 2027.
Path Alignment Remains Open
The exact alignment of the path has not yet been finalized.
Council members framed the vote as addressing a real safety gap. Dave Petschke said the pathway would provide safe passage through a highly traveled corridor and neighborhood area, while Bryan Wirball spoke in support of public connectivity throughout the community to provide safe passage. Jayme Muenz said the project fits into the city's larger bike and pedestrian plan, which aims to increase accessibility and connectivity throughout St. Charles.
Parks Along The Proposed Route
Breen Community Park covers 153.2 acres and offers disc golf, a dog park, soccer and other sports uses, according to the St. Charles Park District.
Otter Cove Aquatic Park is one of the destinations the proposed pathway would connect.
Other Pedestrian Improvements
St. Charles has scheduled the installation of Rectangular Rapid-Flashing Beacons across five high-priority pedestrian crossings citywide as part of its broader Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan.
St. Charles has a track record of leaning on state and federal grants for these kinds of projects. In May 2024, the city partnered with Geneva and IDOT on a $6.35 million widening and reconstruction of Kautz Road, with 78 percent of that cost covered by ITEP and regional grants, according to Shaw Local's earlier reporting. Nearby, construction began in August on the final segment of the 19-mile Great Western Trail Extension connecting LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve in St. Charles to Sycamore, a project using more than $3 million in state and federal ITEP funding, per the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce.
Whether the Campton Hills Road path secures its own share of that funding remains an open question. Final path alignment, potential right-of-way acquisitions, and whether IDOT ultimately selects the project are all still unresolved.
