Appendix M
2020 Trails Master Plan Update
About the Trails Master Plan
The Naperville Park District approved the inaugural Trails Master Plan in December 2008 as a recommenda�on of the former �pen Space and �ecrea�on Master Plan approved that same year. The purpose of the plan was “to create a plan that will help guide the crea�on of linkages for exis�ng, proposed, and future biking/walking trails within the community. The Trails Master Plan also establishes connec�vity throughout Naperville Park District facili�es and adjacent a�rac�ons and des�na�ons” (Houseal Lavigne, p. 1).The plan acted as a guideline for measuring the need and iden�fying loca�ons for future trails within the parks system. About the Amendment The ini�al Trails Master Plan was a landmark to address this popular and ever growing need for the use of and access to mul�use paths and trails. The amendment process iden�fies trail accomplishments since the ini�a�on of the plan, connec�vity opportuni�es, future trail projects, and long‐term ideas, among other items related to trails within the vicinity of Naperville. The original Trails Master Plan can be found on the Naperville Park District website. About Trails With each community survey performed over the last decade, the importance of trails ranks highest with Naperville residents. Trails offer many benefits to the community, including healthy living, recrea�on, increased property values, and an improved physical environment. As referenced by the Na�onal Park Service, “[o]ne of the most direct benefits of community trails and greenways is the close to home, accessible recrea�on opportuni�es they provide” (NPS, 2008). Addi�onally, from the Na�onal Park Service: Trails make communi�es be�er places to live by preserving and crea�ng open spaces for recrea�on. Trails and greenways provide new opportuni�es for outdoor recrea�on and non‐motori�ed transporta�on. Trails also provide a unique facility to serve a diverse popula�on of a community that may otherwise have limited opportuni�es to access natural areas due to financial or transporta�on constraints. Trails provide affordable exercise and recrea�onal opportuni�es within the community. Per the 2008 Trails Master Plan, “[b]y providing trails as an alterna�ve mode of transporta�on to area residents, reducing conges�on on local streets, improving the air quality and other aspects of the environment, providing health benefits, stress relief, exercise opportuni�es, and increasing access to community des�na�ons, trails enhance the overall quality of life in a neighborhood” and the community (Houseal Lavigne, p.2).
2020 Trails Master Plan Update | 1
524 Naperville Park District | 2023 MASTER PLAN
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