Two new sizeable swaths of Loyola Park Beach near Greenleaf and Lunt avenues have been staked off in efforts to reduce erosion and restore the beach back to its native state (the best current example of Illinois' natural dunes is Illinois Beach State Park in Zion). There is a path that allows the public to walk in between these two protected areas to observe the nascent natural dunes. On May 4th the following was posted to Loyola Dunes Restoration Facebook page, "Loyola Dunes Restoration Vigorous growth of thousands of hand-planted clumps of Marram Grass in the late Fall of 2012 are showing rewards in the Spring of 2013. Thank you to every person who labored to make this happen. A new dune is being born."
Marram grass, also known as American Beachgras,s has an extensive root systems that anchors the plants in the shifting sands. They (Ammophila) are located on the East Coast from South Carolina up past Maine, the entire West Coast on up into Canada and throughout the Great Lakes. Other species of Marram grass are found in Europe, Africa and have been introduced into many other areas of the world to help with erosion. The sign adorned with the Mercedes Benz medallion reads," Loyola Park erosion control project in effect. Due to blowing winds and drifting sand onto adjacent park land we are implementing this erosion control project. Please stay out of the roped off areas until the planting has established itself. Thank you for your cooperation"
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