The Forest Preserve District of Will County’s Messenger Woods Nature Preserve in Homer Glen is scheduled to be closed through Friday, June 5.

The three-week closure is necessary as an entrance road replacement project begins. During the closure, the entrance road will be removed and replaced from Bruce Road to the first parking lot as part of a contract awarded by the Board of Commissioners in April.

Weather and other factors could change this timeline. Updates will be posted on the Forest Preserve’s website, ReconnectWithNature.org, as needed.

Messenger Woods Nature Preserve is located on Bruce Road, east of Cedar Road.

The Will County Forest Preserve District Board at its April 9 meeting approved the Messenger Woods work among several projects this summer. The $377,766 contract was awarded to Construction Solutions of Illinois Inc.

The work includes the removal and reconstruction of the entrance drive from Bruce Road to the first parking lot, along with required restoration and mitigation. Work is scheduled to begin in early summer and be completed by the end of the year.

The road will not be merely paved over, it will be raised with suitable foundation to prevent flooding and deterioration.

Messenger Woods Nature Preserve, the oldest in Will County. (Forest Preserve photo)