Fox River Park to close starting Feb. 15 while ash trees are removed

Fox River County Park in Salem will be closing for ash tree removal sooner than anticipated, the county Parks Department announced Friday.

The logging company working to remove some 2,600 ash trees from county parks is bringing in a second crew to do the work at Fox River Park while another crew finishes up work already under way at Petrifying Springs County Park in Somers.

After Fox River Park, a logging crew will move to Brighton Dale Golf Course to cut ash trees, Kenosha County Parks Director Jon Rudie said earlier this week.

The logging needs to be done while the ground is frozen to avoid damage grass and golf course areas, Rudie said.

Emerald ash borer is a beetle considered an invasive species in the United States. It infests ash trees in such a way that the only effective treatment once a tree is infested is to cut the tree down to try to stop the spread of the beetle.

Here is the whole announcement:

Kenosha County Parks Director Jon Rudie has announced that Fox River Park, hiking trail, sledding hill and disc golf course will be temporarily closed to the public due to unsafe conditions during the ash tree removal program, beginning Monday, Feb. 15. Kenosha County Parks is in the process of having over 2,600 ash trees removed by a logging company as part of the comprehensive emerald ash borer program. The logging company is bringing in a second crew of loggers to begin work at Fox River Park. Petrifying Springs Park will remain closed and is expected to reopen on Feb. 20. Loggers will be working on the removal of ash trees within picnic areas, roadsides, parking areas and walking paths at both Fox River Park and Petrifying Springs Park. The loggers are on a tight schedule to complete the removal of the ash trees and need to move and work uninterrupted in each park before the ground thaws. Logging is one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States and to ensure that the public is not placed in an unsafe situation during the project, the parks will remain closed until the loggers complete their work. Brighton Dale Park will also be closed when the loggers transfer operations to remove the ash trees there. Each park will reopen as soon as the logger has finished the removal of the ash trees. Openings and closings of each park will be updated on the Kenosha County Parks website. For more information, please contact Kenosha County Parks at 857-1869.