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A new, inclusive approach to park improvement that was initiated in 2012 will result in a new playground in Glen Ellyn Manor Park this year. The Park District reached out to neighbors via a survey, focus group, and several meetings to gather input that proved invaluable. We gained better insight into attitudes, interests, wants and needs. As a result, the Park District will have a neighborhood park that better represents and serves our district and particularly the surrounding neighborhood that the playground serves. The final design has been completed and includes a new playground for preschoolers and older children, restored natural areas, a new path system. We've worked with the Village and plan to remove an unused cul-de-sac to increase green space in the park. The next phase is working with the Village to secure permits, seeking bids for construction, and finally, construction itself.
In an effort to increase safety and security at the Spring Avenue Dog Park, the park was fully enclosed last year and now there is a new swipe card entry system. All dog park members have a swipe card that is now required to enter the dog park. In addition, the system will increase the park district's ability to better monitor visitations.
While you’re out in the parks, try the new boardwalk in Churchill Park which creates a complete trail loop within the park or the brand new trail within Ackerman Woods. The Ackerman trail is a quarter-mile loop connecting Lenox Road and Ackerman Park. Our recent Community Attitude and Interest Survey results show that 67% of respondents want new walking trails and connections to existing to trails, so we encourage you to check them out.
And finally, we are stepping out of the board room and into the parks to meet our neighbors this summer! The Park District will begin a series of Commissioners’ Neighborhood Meet & Greet Picnics in three locations. It’s a new approach we hope will encourage everyone living near these parks to come out and meet their commissioners, learn more about the Community Attitude and Interest Survey, Lake Ellyn Park Master Plan and other relevant news. We’ll bring the Block Party Wagon and offer free food on a first come, first served basis. Please see page 17 for details. We hope to see you there.
See you in the parks,
Melissa Creech
President, Board of Commissioners
2012 has been a productive year for the park district. We’ve completed a community-wide attitude and interest survey, several capital improvement projects are finished with more in progress, and the Lake Ellyn Park master plan will be final next month.
Preliminary survey results reveal 91% of all respondent households use parks, with Lake Ellyn, Ackerman and Newton ranking the highest. Ninety-four percent say the physical condition of all parks is excellent or good. The most used facilities are Sunset Pool, Lake Ellyn Boathouse and Ackerman Sports and Fitness Center. Fifty percent of households have participated in programs with 89% rating them excellent or good.
Survey respondents indicated the most important actions the park district could take would be to maintain existing parks and facilities (72%), develop new walking trail and connections to existing trails (67%), improve and restore natural areas (64%) and upgrade Lake Ellyn Park and Boathouse (63%). The Glen Ellyn Park District Board of Commissioners and staff will use the survey data for future planning in our budgets, capital project decisions and strategic plans.
Thank you to all who completed the survey. Your input is invaluable. A copy of the full survey can be found here.
Finally, we hope to see you at the Lake Ellyn Boathouse 75th Anniversary Open House on Sunday, November 11, 2012 from 11:45am-2pm. The event will include historical displays, live entertainment and light refreshments.
See you in the parks,
Melissa Creech
President, Board of Commissioners
- The Ackerman Sports & Fitness Center roof replacement is completed. Tarps and buckets that were used to control leaking in the building are no longer needed.
- All Board meetings are now broadcasted live and archived online through the use of new video equipment.
- Additional fencing at Spring Avenue Recreation Center makes the dog park now fully enclosed for dog and park user safety.
- A new trail at Ackerman Park gives access to Ackerman Woods for the first time.
- Irrigation, turf, field drainage and field improvements were made at Ackerman, Newton and Village Green parks for our many athletic programs.
- Baseball fields were converted into all-purpose playing fields at Newton Park to better meet our field needs.
- A new sustainable garden at Lake Foxcroft Park was made possible through a cooperative effort with the College of DuPage.
- At Maryknoll Park the oak savannah restoration is underway, along with restoration work at the frog ponds.
- A new shade structure was installed at the splash pad at Maryknoll Park along, and wireless Internet access was also installed at Maryknoll.
- Sunset Pool locker rooms received new bathroom fixtures and a hot water pump re-circulating system, along with pool painting, pump repairs and diving board resurfacing.
Nestled among hundreds of beautiful trees and foliage, Lake Ellyn Park has become the pride of the Glen Ellyn Park District. This spring, the Board of Commissioners made a commitment to develop a master plan for this beautiful setting. The Park District hired the consulting firm of Conservation Design Forum (CDF) to develop a master plan that will guide us toward planning future improvements and usage. CDF was selected by a committee of staff, board and citizens from among many highly qualified firms. CDF was selected for its outstanding qualifications and experience in preservation and master plans. The park district plans to host interactive and participatory planning sessions with interested citizens and community leaders to work with CDF on this ambitious project.
Concurrent with this plan, the park district will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Lake Ellyn Boathouse. Throughout the years, the boathouse has been host to many park district events, family celebrations and community gatherings. The park district will host an open house on Sunday, November 11, 2012 from 11:45am-2:00pm, immediately following the Veterans Day ceremony in the park. Learn about the boathouse’s history and plans to preserve the history in a digital format that is accessible to all. Light refreshments will be served.
In addition to focusing on Lake Ellyn, a formal community-wide attitude and interest survey, created with input from community leaders and focus groups conducted in the spring, will be completed this fall. Once the data has been compiled and analyzed, the results will be published for public viewing.
We value your input on all of our issues. As a reminder, the Board of Commissioners meets on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at Spring Avenue Recreation Center at 7:00pm. These meetings, as well as agendas, minutes and highlights, can be viewed live on the park district Website at www.gepark.org. In addition, the meetings can be viewed later on-demand on the Website. Highlights can also be found on the Board blog, www.geparkboard.blogspot.com.
See you in the parks,
Melissa Creech
President
Glen Ellyn Park District Board of Commissioners
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