The national oceanic and atmospheric administration is providing $5,750,639 in federal funding to lake forest open lands association through the FY2024 and FY2025 coastal zone management habitat…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management awarded Lake Forest Open Lands Association a $5.75 million Cooperative Agreement through the FY2024 and FY2025 Coastal Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Grant Competition (CFDA 11.473). The award, effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2028, funds the "Advancing Innovative Great Lakes Habitat Solutions" project, which will restore and stabilize a 61-acre public nature preserve along Lake Michigan's coast in Lake County, Illinois. Specific deliverables include restoration of 500 linear feet of failed bluff habitat, stabilization and revegetation of ravine slopes with rare native species, restoration and stabilization of 900 linear feet of ravine channel, installation of nearshore nature-based reef structures, and mitigation of erosive stormwater inputs to the site.

The project will create a high-quality, interconnected coastal ecosystem to enhance ecological function and support diverse native species while serving as a demonstration site for technical exchange forums. Lake Forest Open Lands Association has partnered with the University of Illinois to conduct combined hydrology, water quality, and botanical characterization work to guide coastal wetland restoration and management, and with The Morton Arboretum to improve forest health and increase tree canopy coverage. The completed restoration site and ongoing monitoring will inform shoreline stabilization planning and coastal hazard mitigation practices for the Great Lakes region and beyond.

The national oceanic and atmospheric administration is providing $5,750,639 in federal funding to lake forest open lands association through the FY2024 and FY2025 coastal zone management habitat protection and restoration grant competition. This funding will increase the safety, durability, and productivity of coastal communities within coastal counties through habitat restoration planning, engineering and design projects, habitat restoration implementation projects, and land conservation projects. Specifically, lake forest open lands association will use these funds for the advancing innovative great lakes habitat solutions project. This project will fund the restoration of significant ravine, bluff and nearshore habitat in a 61-acre public nature preserve along lake michigans coast in lake county, illinois. Specifically IT will create a high-quality, interconnected coastal ecosystem that enhances ecological function and supports diverse native species: restoring 500 linear feet of failed bluff habitat; stabilizing and revegetating key ravine slopes with rare native species; additional restoration and stabilization of 900 linear feet of ravine channel; installing nearshore nature-based reef structures; and addressing the highly erosive stormwater input to the site. The entire project and resulting site enhancements and monitoring will serve as a demonstration site for technical exchange forums to inform shoreline stabilization planning and coastal hazard mitigation practices for the great lakes and beyond. The preserve serves as critical habitat for federally and state-identified conservation priority species along the nations longest freshwater coastline, yet its species variety is declining due to ongoing stressors, including invasive species, fire suppression and habitat fragmentation. Species loss has cascading effects on species across the food web, affecting the ecosystem function and stability of the chicago region. The proposed project builds upon prior public investments in habitat protection and public access enhancements and will address accelerated development-driven erosion by restoring essential ecological processes through the rehabilitation of critical ravine, bluff, and nearshore environments. This includes restoration of the stormwater input to the site, stabilization of the most actively eroding ravines and protection of the bluff and nearshore areas of the preserve, all of which will help protect water quality for the 42% of illinois residents who are supplied drinking water from lake michigan. Lake forest open lands association is committed to the long-term viability of this ecosystem and area residents, and as such is leveraging $818,740 in complementary investment as well as staff time by lake forest open lands association and its partners. This informal cost sharing reflects a strong commitment to the success of the proposed restoration efforts.