The Roscoe Village board voted unanimously Thursday night to accept a land donation of just more than hundred acres, that previously belonged to local Developer Jeff Petry.
The land is part of the Chicory Ridge subdivision off Roscoe Road.
Last September, 17-year-old DJ Beauchamp drowned in the pond there while swimming with some friends.
Since then, neighbors and Beauchamp's family have pushed for improved safety.
With Thursday's vote to take over the land, trustees say they plan to make it a safer place by placing barriers around the pond and no-swimming signs.
They're considering a park right now for part of property.
Residents at Thursday's meeting were on board with these changes and say the land decision brings some closure to the difficult drowning.
"I think this is one small step in taking a horrible situation like that and turning it into a positive situation for a community who needs the support," Roscoe Resident Tyler Nathan said.
"That's the only way we're going to be able to make it safe is by the city owning it and make sure there's nobody down there swimming," Trustee Scott Richardson said.
Richardson says he wants to include Chicory Ridge residents in the future planning for this site. Work could get underway as early as this summer.
In the mean-time, he plans to have village staff put up no-swimming signs around the pond on Friday.
Richardson says the village won't get rid of the pond simply because it's too expensive to fill it with dirt.
Plus the fact that pond naturally fills up with groundwater from the nearby Rock River.