ParkTalk Podcast: Nurturing Nature: A Decade of the Knoch Knolls Nature Center

Tuesday, August 6, 2024

Episode Description:

The Knoch Knolls Nature Center has been an environmental staple in the community since opening its doors in 2014. Ahead of the 10th Anniversary celebration, Naperville Park District Executive Director Brad Wilson and Nature Center Manager Angelique Harshman join the podcast to discuss the Nature Center's impact on the community over the last decade.

Quotes from the Episode:

What spurred the Naperville Park District to build a nature center at Knoch Knolls Park?

Every 3-5 years, the Park District conducts a Community Interest & Opinion survey, and what we had learned from residents over 15 years ago was an interest in expanding the environmental programs offered. Environmental sustainability, education, stewardship: that’s one of the District's core values and has been a core value of the District for a long time and we saw that having a nature center that could focus on those areas was important to bring to the community. – Brad Wilson

How have programs at the Nature Center evolved over the last 10 years?

Preschool is very popular, and we have added more sessions over the years, and almost from the beginning I wanted to offer free programming, and we have free programming for families that’s continued to this day. We’ve expanded our adult programs with landscape programming in addition to gardening, and we’ve added take home kits for families. – Angelique Harshman

How has the Knoch Knolls Nature Center impacted the community?

It really has become a destination facility. Knoch Knolls Park was certainly a destination park prior to the Nature Center, but I think the Nature Center and all the improvements that have happened since then have really enhanced that. – Brad Wilson

We see regular visitors, which is wonderful. There’s a lot of people that are enjoying it. It’s a hub for all the environmental focused activities that we do throughout the Park District. – Angelique Harshman