IPRA’s new LocateAPark.com site was spotlighted in today’s Daily Herald with a rather nice story by Anna Marie Kukec who writes on the e-Buzz.

So your New Year’s resolution was to lose weight.

Are you keeping your promise?

If not, Oakbrook Terrace-based Illinois Park and Recreation Association wants to help.

The group has launched a mapping system at www.locateapark.com to help you find a park or recreational facility anywhere in Illinois and some parts of Indiana to help you get in shape and stay healthy.

“With the obesity epidemic, we thought it would be important to show the public what types of recreational facilities are available to them. This system should make that more attractive to them,” said Dean Comber, the association’s information technology/project management director.

The association has 2,700 members who are employed by park and recreational agencies statewide. They’re on the frontlines of trying to help residents keep fit, he said.

The Web site is based on Google Maps and allows you to find the city, suburb and township recreation facility. You can get an area map or zoom into streets and create directions.

When you click on the link for an agency, a window appears with the agency name and provides the address and links to their Web site and the association’s Web site (www.ilipra.org).

Comber said the upgrades already have caught the attention of other park districts from other states and even the federal government. He recently fielded calls from U.S. Department of Natural Resources and the National Recreation and Parks Association.

Next, Comber said he’s hoping to expand the mapping and linking systems to add other nearby states, such as Wisconsin.

“Our association strives to promote the awareness and benefits of recreation throughout the state of Illinois and hopefully the rest of the nation,” Comber said.

Share the news about LocateAPark.com with your staff and residents. We’ll let you know when more features are added to the site. Until then…have fun at a nearby park or facility!