Published Date: October 27, 2020

CCFPD has not had a voter-approved tax increase in its 72-year history. Yet, Champaign County forest preserve lands have increased from 260 acres to the 4,000 acres of forests, prairies, wetlands, and waterways that are protected today. 

Perhaps the value of six forest preserves in Champaign County had not been totally realized until April 2020 when stores, schools, and restaurants were closed. Residents found respite in the paved trails at Buffalo Trace and the Kickapoo Rail Trail while others navigated their kayaks down the Sangamon River and in lakes located at Lake of the Woods, Riverbend, Homer Lake, and Middle Fork River Forest Preserves.