The Taylorville Kiwanis Club heard from a state official with the Illinois Recreational Access Program at its Tuesday meeting at the Taylorville Moose Lodge.

Shane Sinclair is the Southern Illinois Coordinator for the Illinois Recreational Access Program, or IRAP, which is part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.  The program was created out of the Federal Farm Bill of 2013, providing states with money to lease private property for semi-controlled public access for recreational opportunities such as hunting and fishing.

Sinclair told the Kiwanis Club his territory covers south of Interstate 72 in 53 counties, working with willing landowners to establish a management plan for their property that addresses such issues as invasive species, opening of the canopy, natural oak and hickory forest regeneration, and prairie grass plantings.

He added his agency then offers to lease the property from the landowner, and then allows public access thru a permitting and reservation process.

Sinclair told the Kiwanis Club landowners get a rental rate plus his agency cost shares improvements.

Sinclair told Kiwanis members some 33-thousand acres and 3-hundred landowners across Illinois are participating in the statewide program.

In other Kiwanis news, Kiwanis Park co-chair Duane Stock reported that the new climbing wall at the park has been installed, after several weeks of work by him and Kiwanis members Will Perkins, Jerry Woodard, Larry Kemner, Chuck Martin, Tim Sutton, and Dick Wamsley, along with Stock's wife Cindy.   Stock added that thanks to donated supplies and labor from At Your Service Roofing of Pana, the Kiwanis Park restroom building has a new roof.

The local Kiwanis Club reminds the public one of its biggest fund-raisers is taking place this weekend at locations thru-out the city.   This Friday from 8 til 4 and Saturday from 8 til noon, the Kiwanis "Kid's Days" has Kiwanis members on street corners and in front of businesses asking for cash donations to go toward local Kiwanis projects for children and youth such as Coats for Kids, Kiwanis Park, YMCA and high school scholarships, and the Christian County CEO program among others.  The public's generosity is much appreciated.

The Taylorville Kiwanis Club is part of a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world one child and one community at a time.  Weekly meetings are held Tuesdays at noon at the Taylorville Moose Lodge.  For information on the club, go to taylorvillekiwanis.com.