In 2021, the Village received a $10,000 grant from Openlands and ComEd to implement the Village’s Landscape Playbook on the north side of Route 176 (Rockland Road) between the right-of-way and the Lake Bluff Golf Course. The purpose of the project was to rehabilitate 10 acres of high-profile hardwood savanna and wetland habitat along an important Village corridor consistent with the Village's Thematic Landscape Identity Gateway and Corridor Plan (which was developed in community partnership), in order to transform and beautify a buckthorn thicket into a high-quality habitat for pollinators.
The funding supported two phases: invasive removal and installation of new plantings. The Village retained Pizzo and Associates, Ltd. to perform the initial clearance as well as the treatment of any resprouting invasive species in 2023 and 2024. The grant also included the donation of native trees by Rotary as well as the purchase of about $10,000 in grasses, forbs, shrubs, seeds, etc., which were planted by Lake Bluff Open Lands (LBOLA) volunteers.
Special thanks to:
- ComEd and Openlands for their financial support in this endeavor;
- Rotary for their native tree donations; and
- LBOLA volunteers for all their hard work in completing this project.
