By Cindy Wojdyla Cain - Joliet Herald News

CREST HILL - State Rep. Brent Hassert is continuing his quest to get 700 acres of state-owned land north of Stateville Correctional Center preserved as open space.

Instead of transferring the land to the Will County Forest Preserve District and the Lockport Park District as previously proposed, Hassert has switched gears.

The Romeoville Republican is now asking Gov. Rod Blagojevich to allow the Illinois Department of Corrections to transfer its land to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

Then, the IDNR could lease the land to the forest preserve and park district. That would eliminate a need to get the plan approved by the General Assembly, Hassert told The Herald News' editorial board on Monday.

To drum up support for the new plan, the Lockport Park District will invite area homeowners to informational meetings in the next few weeks, said park district Director Sue Micklevitz.

Hassert has been on a mission to preserve the land since 2001. He said it's the largest parcel of undeveloped land north of Interstate 80.

"If we don't take advantage of this now, we lose it forever," he said.

Last year, Hassert hoped to push legislation through the General Assembly that would have transferred 470 acres to the forest preserve district and 230 acres to the Lockport Park District.

But the plan wasn't successful.

The new plan was suggested by the IDNR director as a better way to get the land preserved, Hassert said.

If the plan is approved, the forest preserve district would install trails and picnic pavilions on a preserve named Prairie Bluff.

The park district would establish soccer and ball fields on its land. The two governmental entities could share parking lots and entrance roads.

The forest preserve district has included the project in its list of preserve improvements that would be funded by a $95 million bond sale, which is on today's ballot as a referendum question.

Mike Pasteris, director of the forest preserve district, said preserving the land is crucial to protecting the nearby Lockport Prairie Nature Preserve, which is home to endangered species.

Preserving Prairie Bluff will also help protect the underground water aquifer that feeds Lockport Prairie and provides water for the city of Crest Hill, Pasteris said.

Hassert isn't sure if and when the governor will approve the land transfer. The key is to build local consensus now and to keep lobbying for the plan, he said.

Concerns from Crest Hill and the Chaney-Monge School District about lost tax revenue would have to be addressed as the plan moves forward, Hassert said.

But neither issue should derail the plan, he added.

About 150,000 people live within a 15-minute drive of the site, so it's crucial to preserve land now before it's too late, he said.

"There aren't a lot of areas left we can look at."