A R L I N G T O N H E I G H T S PA R K D I S T R I C T
Frontier Rec reation Camelot Heritage
Winter 2012
Dear Residents: More than just bricks and mortar. Building a healthier and happier community. The Arlington Heights Park District’s plan to renovate four community parks by the year 2016 goes beyond just building the physical environments for fun. This plan will affect and potentially transform the lives of all residents and the community. By also overhauling aging facilities in order to continue to offer innovative programming, this plan will also deliver modern, social spaces in which to connect with friends and family to create lifelong memories to share forever.
The Park District Board of Commissioners and staff have spent three years researching a long-range facilities solution with substantial resident input. Whether in focus groups, open forums, Board meetings or neighborhood meetings, you have consistently told us that you want updated facilities. We want to meet community needs. However, this will take a significant amount of money. At the August 16, 2011 Regular Board meeting, the Park Board discussed the possibility of referendum funding which would spread a $48 million bond issuance over a 25-year period. This would have a tax impact of $36 per year on a $300,000 market value home.
We listened.
2009 Community Needs Assessment Survey
• Most residents favored building renovations vs. building new. Due to several factors, we are considering a proposal to build new instead of renovate existing. • Over 60% of respondents favored adding amenities such as fitness center areas and walking/jogging tracks.
2010 Comprehensive Plan and Master Planning Process
• The Park District Board of Commissioners and staff engaged in long-range planning and completed a five-year Comprehensive Plan in 2010 • The master plan allows the District to most efficiently use and reallocate existing buildings, space and resources to continue to offer neighborhoodbased centers as opposed to the larger, centralized centers you may find in other communities.
What is your role in this process?
While the Park District Board of Commissioners has created this master plan, the decision to place a referendum question on the 2012 election ballot has not yet been determined. We encourage you to learn more about our plans to continue providing affordable and impactful fun for your family. And finally, we invite you to speak up and let us know if these plans do or do not reflect your needs and expectations.
Sincerely,
Maryfran H. Leno President Park Board of Commissioners
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Steve Scholten Executive Director Arlington Heights Park District
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