Home | News Index | Southern Link | Northern Link | How to Oppose | Kane 2020 Plan | Kendall Plan

Aurora Beacon-News
August 26, 2004

'Stop the Beltway' rally, picnic set Sunday


BIG ROCK — Music, food, an old-fashioned hayride and a shared opposition to the proposed outer-belt freeway will be celebrated Sunday at the 3rd annual 'Stop the Beltway' rally and family picnic here.

The event is sponsored by Citizens Against the Sprawlway, the grassroots organization opposing the so-called Prairie Parkway.

The festivities start at 4 p.m. at the Marvel Davis Farm, 47W066 Jericho Road, about five miles west of Route 47.

The Grasslands Quintet will perform gypsy swing, bluegrass, western swing and reworked popular standards.

A complimentary picnic supper will be provided by Citizens Against the Sprawlway.

At the gathering, Citizens Against the Sprawlway will recognize the support it has received from Kane County Board Chairman Mike McCoy, state Sen. Chris Lauzen and St. Charles attorney Tim Dwyer, officials from the opposition group said.

The proposed Prairie Parkway would stretch for 36 miles through western Kane and Kendall counties, linking Interstate 88 with Interstate 80 in Minooka.

Sunday's picnic and rally also will feature exhibits on conservation, farmland protection, sensible land use and transportation planning, and alternative highway projects.

The Davis farm has been in the family since 1836 and was named one of the state's 10 most endangered historic landmarks in 2002 because the Prairie Parkway would cut a swath across its fields.

Nearby Big Rock Creek, crossed three times by the proposed highway, has been labeled by the state as the finest stream in northern Illinois. During the picnic, there will be hayrides along the creek and adjoining fields.

08/26/04