Crystal Lake Park Rehabilitation Project

Planning in Progress

Reconfiguration of the Loop Road into a one-way road will encourage parkgoers to drive through the entirety of Crystal Lake Park and create a more connected park system. Oneway circulation for vehicles will also enhance pedestrian and cyclist safety by eliminating the risk that comes with two-way vehicular traffic. Half of the road will be dedicated to vehicle traffic, and the other lane will maintain use only for bicyclists and pedestrians.  A large stripe down the middle of the road, with pavement marking and signage, will be used to separate users.

Urbana Park District looks to increase parking availability as a part of this project around the Lake House and playground.

Learn more about the Crystal Lake Park Road Resurfacing and One-Way Road System.

Ongoing

Franklin Street extends west of Broadway Ave. in towards the park. Part of the long term planning efforts for the park include the slow acquisition of the homes along Franklin Street so they may eventually be incorporated into the park space and the park can have a more uniform presence along Broadway Ave.

Planning in Progress, 2019 - Present

The addition of a bridge over Saline Branch paired with a path expansion helps connect the north and south sides of the park as well as encourage parkgoers to explore further into the park.

The addition of the bridge across Saline Creek connects the park with the Broadway Avenue park boundary, and path improvements along Broadway Ave. and along the park’s southern border provide a safer and easier route to walk the park’s perimeter. 

The replacement of the 4’ wide sidewalks with a 10’ wide multiuse path will complete the park loop which utilizes the future one-way park road and Park Street Path as well. 

Phase I Completed 2018  ||   Phase II Ongoing

In its 114 years as a recreation hotspot for Urbana, Crystal Lake has seen various stages of decline and repair. Recently the lake has suffered from sedimentation resulting in high nutrient loads causing algae and nuisance aquatic plant growth to cover the lake’s surface and impact the water quality.

Ongoing efforts are being made to restore Crystal Lake to its previous state, remove sediment, and rebuild eroding lake edges. This restoration removes the dense invasive vegetation along the shoreline, incorporates native plantings and emergent plugs to stabilize the shoreline and restore habitat, and unclogs the sediment forebay. Through this work as well as lighting, accessibility, and pedestrian comfort and safety enhancements, Crystal Lake and the surrounding park will be restored to its healthiest state and become even more valuable to its surrounding neighborhood and the community of Urbana. 

Planning in Progress

The Lake House was constructed in 1985 as part of a rehabilitation effort to improve natural conditions along the lake edge and add sediment control measures. The Lake House and its boat dock are destinations for public recreation. The Lake House currently is used for both public and private events, the terrace acting as a stage for musicians and the building itself a rentable space for parties, weddings, and more.

In 2018, plans for renovations to the Lake House and its surrounding amenities began. The proposed enhancements include a new terrace configuration that allows for better staging for live music and other events, with the lake serving as the backdrop. The enhanced terrace also allows for more seating along the lake front, as well as an ADA accessible route to the dock area along with improvements to the adjacent bridge.

Future Planning

Picnic Pavilions provide shade and shelter for families and groups, and allows parkgoers to enjoy the park’s facilities in a variety of weather. Picnic Pavilions can also be used as an event space for small gatherings and community events such as birthday parties, fundraisers, or other activities. These pavilions will follow the same aesthetic as the Large Pavilion with green metal roofs and steel columns, seeking to tie all park pavilions together. Pavilion capacity will allow for small gatherings and will house 2-4 picnic tables.

Future Planning

The current North Woods pavilion is located in the center of the park, north of Crystal Lake and south of the Family Aquatic Center. Due to the old age of the pavilion and its location within the flood plain of the Saline Branch, a new pavilion and volleyball in this location is not proposed for the future.

This area will transition to multiple small picnic zones with a soft trail through naturalized edge near the Saline Branch. Access to barbecue pits and space for outdoor recreational gatherings will be maintained. This redesign will replace the North Woods Pavilion, where program use will transition to the new UPDAC Outdoor Learning Pavilion to the north.  

Future Planning

This location is the site of the District’s former Planning and Operations Facility which was demolished in 2017. The building demolition created an opportunity for park amenities in the area, although no formal planning has been conducted, or specific amenities decided on.

The addition of a multipurpose pavilion and event space as part of an arts corridor allows Crystal Lake Park to provide a more diverse range of opportunities for its patrons and community on the east side of Saline Creek.

Pavilions can be rented for private and community use and offer shade for extended use in hot or inclement weather. 

Locating the multi-purpose pavilion next to a playground creates an inclusive space to enjoy the park, allowing children to play while remaining close to the pavilion if an event is happening, or otherwise serving as an additional playground for neighbors to enjoy.

Future Planning

Enhancing the current trail system will create a more interconnected park and allow parkgoers to have a more enjoyable park experience. Expanding trail systems at the park perimeter will forge connections with the surrounding neighborhood and encourage higher levels of use. Currently divided by Crystal Lake and the Saline Branch, the creation of additional pathways along the Saline Branch will join the East and West halves of the park as well as create potential connections to the larger Urbana Park District trail network as part of a larger greenway system.

Future Planning

Fairview Avenue is an important link between Crystal Lake Park and its surrounding neighborhood. Fairview Ave. runs perpendicular to the park’s western perimeter and features a bike lane that connects to the shared use path along Goodwin Ave. This path expansion creates a small loop near Carle Hospital campus for staff, visitors and patients to enjoy nearby.

Enhancing the Fairview Ave entry Path strengthens ties to the existing bike path network in Urbana and encourages residents to access the park and provides the opportunity to further connect with its surrounding context.

Future Planning

The Saline Overlook is located near Anita Purves Nature Center along Saline Creek in Busey Woods. Its close proximity to the Nature Center will make it the ideal location for bird watching, outdoor education, and wildlife observation. When the bridge is replaced, it will be widened to 8-10’ and a bump out will provide a spot to stop and enjoy the view of the Saline.

Future Planning

Fence and landscape enhancements along the property line on the west side of the park will act as a screen and buffer between park space and several adjacent undesirable views, such as Carle Foundation Hospital parking and the Champaign County Fairgrounds.

A new fence and a dense strip of trees, shrubs, and groundcovers will divide and screen the park from these neighboring properties and buffer any excess noise that may come from the fairgrounds specifically, creating a more serene and protected experience for patrons within the park while enhancing the visual aesthetic on the western perimeter. 

Completed 2017

The Friendship Grove Nature Playscape is an outdoor play space associated with the Anita Purves Nature Center. The playscape offers opportunities for play for children of all ages
and abilities, with a variety of mental and physically challenging features. Four main “anchor pieces” are the focus of the playscape - a log wall, a fallen tree, a digging area, and a tunnel all allow children to connect with nature and learn about their environment.

Completed 2024

The Crystal Lake Park Family Aquatic Center provides water recreation facilities for residents of Urbana and its surrounding communities. The Aquatic Center has a variety of features for swimmers of all ages and levels, including lap lanes for competitive swimmers, a sand play and stream bed area for toddlers and preschoolers, a water vortex, three water slides, and a diving board, and a wet deck for adults.

The Aquatic Center’s competition pool is used for both recreational lap swimming and hosting competitive summer swim teams. 

Completed 2015

Widening of the sidewalk along Broadway Ave. to 8 feet allows for a variety of uses and provides space for both pedestrians and cyclists. The trail improvements enhance pedestrian connections at the North and South ends of the park and connect cyclists to the shared bike lane on Broadway at the south end of the park.

2023 Update: The park district will receive $852,625 in grant funds to expand the Broadway Ave sidewalk between Park St and Stebbins St to a curvilinear multi-use path exactly like the new Park St path.

Completed 2008

The West Fishing Pier is an ADA accessible pier located just west along the lake from the Lake House. This pier provides access to lake views, seating, and recreation for park visitors who may find it difficult to navigate the ramps and stairs at the Lake House and helps provide equal opportunities to parkgoers of all ages and abilities.

Completed

A $400,000 Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources helped fund a new playground, family game area, pavilion replacement, new boat dock, stone outcroppings, and some shoreline restoration in 2020.

The new West Woods Pavilion is available for free on a first-come, first-served basis and provides picnic tables for shaded, protected outdoor dining as well as a barbecue pit. The Family Game Area and Playground will provide families from the surrounding neighborhoods and region have a destination within the park where their children can explore and play.

The game area offers games such as a concrete bags set and picnic tables with chess and checker boards. A new playground, located near the large pavilion, is nature themed.

Completed 2019

The Park Street Multi-Use Trail is a 10’ wide concrete trail that runs along the southern perimeter of the park. This wide path allows walkers, runners, and cyclists to safely use the trail simultaneously and connects the east and west sides of the park. The Park Street Trail, in
combination with the Broadway Ave. Trail, will create a safe and accessible path that parkgoers can use to walk the perimeter of the site.

In 2019, a 10' wide multiuse path was installed along the south side of Crystal Lake Park, thanks to an Illinois Transportation Enhancement Project (ITEP) grant, and a generous match from Carle Hospital.