Inner-City Pool Transformed

"Before" and "after" photos of Rockford's Harkins Aquatic Center. The pool recently got a million-dollar makeover.

Children growing up in a tough part of Rockford have a new, healthy - and free - place to play this summer. The Rockford Park District cut the ribbon to the Harkins Aquatic Center on June 5.

But the new center isn't exactly new. Built in 1924, the traditional swimming pool at Fair Grounds Park in central Rockford has undergone a radical renovation to become a state-of-the-art aquatics center with zero-depth entry, lap lanes, splash features, lots of shade structures and more play value than most community swimming pools.

The facility is in a neighborhood that is home for many kids living in public housing who are battling poverty and the temptations of gangs and drugs. Harkins Aquatic Center continues to be open free of charge and offers learn-to-swim classes at no charge.

The $1.4 million phase one renovation was funded in part by a $400,000 OSLAD grant, and $5,000 from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation.

Governor Releases More Than $1.2 Million for Bicycle Trails In May, Governor Rod Blogojevich announced the release of more than $1.2 million in grants to help develop new bicycle trails or to widen or repair existing trails in northeastern Illinois. Three projects resolve safety problems by developing bridges or other safety elements, while grants awarded to projects at the Chicago Park District, the DuPage County Department of Transportation and McHenry County Conservation District all are part of the Grand Illinois Trail, a 475-mile trail that loops from Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River and back. The grants, administered by the Department of Natural Resources, reimburse local governments for half the cost of developing a trail, up to a maximum of $200,000. Grant recipients include: • The Chicago Park District - $200,000 to redevelop a half-mile segment of the Lakefront Trail from Melrose Avenue to Addison Street. The trail will be widened from 10 to 14 feet. • DuPage County Division of Transportation -$200,000 to replace a deteriorated, six-foot wide bridge over the east branch of the DuPage River. This segment of the Prairie Path is a link in the Grand Illinois Trail. • Geneva Park District - $189,700 to construct a 1.7-mile multi-use trail and a bridge over Mill Creek. The trail connects to portions of the Kane County Mid-County Trail, Peck Farm Trail and Mill Creek Trail. • Kane County Forest Preserve District - $134,500 to construct a 1.5-mile trail and two bridges in Thornton/Sugar Grove Forest Preserves in southern Kane County. The segment is the southernmost section of the Kone County Mid-County Trail and connects to the Gilman National Trail. • Lake County Division of Transportation - $134,900 to construct a multi-use trail along the north side of Deerfield Road from Saunders Road to Wilmot Road. The project includes a tunnel under the 1-94 ramp. • McHenry County Conservation District - $200,000 to construct a 2.2-mile trail connecting the towns of Harvard and Chemung in northwestern McHenry County. The segment is part of the Grand Illinois Trail. • Will County Forest Preserve District - $200,000 to construct 1.2 miles of trail, which will connect the Joliet Junction Trail on the east and the Rock Run Corridor Trail on the west.

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Winnebago County Gets Grant to Produce Planning Document

Next spring, agencies in Boone and Winnebago Counties will have a new tool for planning for land acquisition, natural area preservation, greenway corridor and recreational trail development.

The Winnebago County Forest Preserve District has received a grant for $20,000 from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation to update and print the Boone/Winnebago Greenways Plan Map. The project will be a cooperative effort among several agencies that produced the first Greenways Plan in 1997.

The new map will be a one-of-a-kind document that indicates existing protected green space and potential future green space acquisitions, as well as recreational trails and corridors. It will be maintained as a GIS digitized document and will be made available electronically to local agencies for inclusion in planning efforts. The Greenways Plan GIS database of plat, topography, land cover and natural resource information will be continually updated.

The research, development and publication of the Boone/Winnebago Greenways document will be undertaken as a collaborative effort between the Winnebago County Forest Preserve District, the Boone County Conservation District, the City of Rockford, the City of Loves Park, the Village of Rockton, the Rockford Park District, the Belvidere Park District, the Natural Land Institute, the Rockford Area Transportation Study and the Boone and Winnebago County Planning Departments.

John Ohrlund, the former superintendent of parks for the Skokie Park District, has been designated as the award-winning district's new superintendent of parks and facilities. In addition to his role as head of park services, Ohrlund now also oversees the management and operation of the Skokie Sports Park, Weber Park Golf Course, Skatium Ice Arena, Skokie Water Playground, Devonshire Aquatic Center, and Dammrich Rowing Center.

Superintendent of parks in Skokie since 1989, Ohrlund was in the same position in Bismarck, N.D, from 1983 to 1989. He received his bachelor's degree in biology from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, S.D. in 1977, and his master's degree in management from the University of Mary in Bismarck in 1988. He is recognized as a Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) by the IPRA and is a member of the NRPA.

Ohrlund was director of the Park and Natural Resource Management Section (PNRMS) in 1998 and was named its Park Professional of the Year in 1999. He is also the past president of the Midwest Institute of Park Executives.

April Armer was recently hired as the facility manager of the Oakton Community Center at Skokie. Her duties include managing the staff and overall operations of the center, including the children's Exploritorium. She also coordinates various summer camps and district special events. Armer previously served in a similar position at the Park Ridge Recreation and Park District, where she worked for six years. She received her bachelor's degree in parks and recreation administration from Illinois State University in Normal and is a Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP). Armer is a member of the IPRA and NRPA. She won the IPRA's Marcy Adams Spirit Award in 2001.

Carlos Bras was recently hired as the school-age coordinator of the district's "Skokie's Place for All Children in Extended care" (the SPACE program), a before- and after-school childcare program held at Skokie Elementary Public Schools. He will also supervise the district's summer camps for school-age children. Bras previously worked as the program director for the Boys & Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal and has served in the U.S. Army Reserves since 1995. (His unit was active in 2001 and 2002.) He received his bachelor's degree in parks and recreation administration from Illinois State University in Normal.

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Mount Prospect Announces New Hires, Promotions

The Mount Prospect Park District announced the hiring and promotion of staff members this spring.

Brian Taylor is the new center coordinator for the Central Community Center. He brings six years of full-time athletic experience to his new position. He has worked as a pool manager and most recently served as youth athletics coordinator. He holds a bachelor's degree in recreation administration from Bowling Green State University and is now working on a master's degree in recreation administration.

Nancy Prosser, CPRP, is the new general facilities manager. She has been with the district for 15 years, serving as the Lions Recreation Center coordinator, concession manager, special projects manager and most recently as the Central Community Center coordinator. Prior to that, she spent three years at the Oregon Illinois Park District managing athletic and aquatic programs. She holds a bachelor's degree in recreation management from Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Cheryl Lufitz has joined the district as its cultural arts coordinator. Most recendy, she worked for WLS Radio as an anchor and as a writer and for Channel 6, the local community access station. She earned a bachelor's degree from Bowling Green State University. After college, she became the morning drive anchor and reporter for a Columbus, Ohio radio station. While there, she earned an Edward R. Murrow Regional Award for best newscast and the Ohio Associated Press Best Reporter award.

Joe Patterson is now the youth coordinator at Mount Prospect. He came to the district as an intern before earning his bachelor's degree in recreation administration from Eastern Illinois University. He has also worked for the Charleston, Illinois, and Hoffman Estates Park Districts.

Parks veteran Robert J. Megquier has joined the staff of CorLands as director of land preservation. He takes the post after a 30-year tenure at the Chicago Park District, where he was most recendy director of planning and development.

Megquier is a registered landscape architect who was responsible for park landscape design at the Chicago Park District. He served as director of engineering, planning and design; director of architecture and engineering; director of planning and development; and other high-level oversight positions.

His accomplishments include increasing the quantity, quality, and public use and enjoyment of park district holdings. He dramatically expanded the acquisition of parkland by the Chicago Park District and oversaw implementation of the mayor's Property for Parks program, which increased the size of neighborhood parks by transferring city-owned land to the park district. He identified the need for and developed a natural-areas initiative, which entailed diversifying park property and uses, as well as launching land-restoration activities. He has received the Kathy Osterman Award for Superior Public Service in the category of Outstanding Executive Employee and a Distinguished Landscape Architecture Alumni Award from Purdue University.

"I'm looking forward to applying the insights I've gained working on Chicago parks to the entire region," says Megquier, who assumed the post at CorLands June 1.

CorLands is the land-acquisition affiliate of Openlands Project, one of the oldest urban conservation groups in the nation. The organization helps protect and acquire land for parks, trails and natural-area conservation in northeastern Illinois and northwest Indiana.

Send People and Places Items to: Rodd Whelpley, editor, Illinois Parks & Recreation rwhelpley@ILparks.org Limit entries to 100 words or fewer. Accompanying color digital or print photographs are welcome. Submissions are published in the order in which they are received and as space is available.

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Agencies that have health and nutrition programs for children and families may want to pencil in a field trip this fall.

The Food, Fun & Fitness Expo 2004 will take place at Chicago's Navy Pier on October 23 and 24 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. More than 75 interactive exhibits and two stages will introduce fun ways to eat smart and play hard.

Participants can cheer for their favorite junior chef; enter a giant mouth to travel the path of food through the body; sample nutritious food and learn how it fuels the body; or try rock climbing, golf, dancing and other action-oriented pursuits.

The Illinois Nutrition Education and Training (Illinois NET) Program, a nonprofit organization that supports achievement by promoting children's health, is producing this event. Organizers expect over 6,000 children and family members to attend.

Individual admissions are $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for children. Group rates are also available. For information on rickets or group rates visit www.kidseatwell.org or call 1-800-466-7998.

Mundelein Names New Assistant Superintendent of Recreation Scott Schleiden was named assistant superintendent of recreation for the Mundelein Park and Recreation District this April. He has been the athletic supervisor for more than two years at Mundelein and will continue supervising athletic programs for youth and adults, as well as overseeing the work of two recreation supervisors who coordinate aquatic programs and youth programming. "I am very excited about Scott's move to assistant superintendent of recreation," said Rita Kipp, superintendent of recreation. "This move will allow the recreation department, as well as the park district, the opportunity to grow in a variety of directions." Schleiden graduated from the University of Iowa and is a Certified Park and Recreation Professional through the Illinois Parks and Recreation Association. Schleiden, also a graduate of Libertyville High School, worked at Alsip Park District as the sports supervisor before coming to the Mundelein Park and Recreation District.

Yorkville Buys More Parkland Along the Fox River Downtown Yorkville gained another piece of riverfront property this spring, thanks to the efforts of a conservation group and a state legislator. The city bought a half-acre parcel on the south side of the Fox River from CorLands, a nonprofit conservation group that bought the land in 2003 and held it while the city pursued funding to purchase it. A grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, through a legislative appropriation spearheaded by state representative Pat Linder, made the purchase possible. Laura Brown, director of the Yorkville Park and Recreation Department, said the land will be developed together with an adjacent city-owned parcel along the river into a place for picnics and other passive uses. A river overlook will take advantage of the scenic views. Work is projected to begin on the park next year, once infrastructure improvements now underway are complete. All this will complement a new riverwalk area to be created this summer.

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IPRA Announces Newly Certified Professionals Nancy Aldrich, CPRP, Arlington Heights Park District Debra L. Barr, CPRP, Elgin Parks and Recreation John P. Barren, CPRP, Winnetka Park District Kevin P. Bowen, APRP, Lisle Park District Trisha D. Breitlow, CPRP, CTRS, NWSRA Conor M. Cahill, CPRP, Bensenville Park District Mary P. Crout, CPRP, Oak Lawn Park District Kimberley A. Harris, CPRP, CTRS, Wheeling Park District Chester (Len) Johnson, CPRP, Naperville Park District Brian A. Jones, CPRP, Charleston Parks and Recreation Department Lorri A. Milewski, CPRP, Glendale Heights Parks and Recreation Diane M. Ratliff, CPRP, CTRS, Charleston Parks and Recreation Department Jennifer Rogers, CPRP, Arlington Heights Park District Kyle P. Saros, CPRP, Lombard Park District Sara A. Schulewitz, CPRP, Wauconda Park District Brian E. Selders, CPRP, Lan-Oak Park District Kimberly A. Serafini, CPRP, NWSRA Anne M. Shelton, CPRP, CTRS, NEDSRA Robert M. Sperl, CPRP, Wheaton Park District Cheryl A. Toohey, CPRP, Skokie Park District

Three Agencies Earn Recreation Access Recognition Three Illinois park and recreation agencies were among six organizations that took honors for their efforts to create recreational opportunities for Illinois residents with disabilities this April. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan presented the Recreation Access Illinois Best Practices Awards at a ceremony in Springfield in conjunction with the IAPD Legislative Conference. Recreation Access Illinois is the attorney general's ongoing, statewide effort, in conjunction with the IAPD, to promote recreational opportunities for people with disabilities. The awards recognize outstanding public-and private-sector efforts to encourage full participation in recreational programs and events. Madigan presented awards to representatives from the following organizations for excellence in their respective categories: • Park District of Highland Park for "Project GAIN"; • Special Recreation Association of Central Lake County for "Counselors in Training"; • Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association for "The Joint Summer Program"; • Easter Seals Children's Development Center and Gymnastics Academy of Rockford • Vaughan Chapter, Paralyzed Veterans of America for "Land of Lincoln Bass Tournament"; and • Knox County Council for Developmental Disabilities for "Ely Minnesota Vacations." Funding for Recreation Access Illinois and the Best Practices Awards is provided through the vitamin anti-trust Settlement and administered by the Office of the Illinois Attorney General. Information regarding the Recreation Access Illinois initiative is available by calling 1-800-900-8086 or by visiting www.RecreationAccessIllinois.org.

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Forest Preserve Purchases Help District Reach Milestone In mid-April the Lake County Forest Preserves Board of Commissioners approved two purchases that expand existing forest preserves and put the district's overall land holdings above the 25,000-acre mark. The board purchased a 75.89-acre addition to the Nippersink Forest Preserve near Volo for $4 million and added 0.36 acres to the Greenbelt Forest Preserve near Waukegan for $19,000. The addition to the Nippersink Forest Preserve is currently known as Country Lakes Resort. The addition expands that preserve to 310.5 acres. The addition to the Greenbelt Forest Preserve is small but important. The land is bordered on the north and west by forest preserve property. Acquisition of this parcel ensures preservation of the land for forest preserve uses and simplifies property boundaries, providing for more effective management of the natural resources within the Greenbelt Forest Preserve. The two land buys increase the total number of acquisitions made using funds from a successful, voter-approved November 2000 referendum to 36, and the total acres of forest preserves in Lake County to 25,038.

Decatur Breaks Ground on New Golf Course

Tree removal, lake development and other earthwork on the Decatur Park District's new golf course is expected to be completed at the end of July. The work comprises phase one of an effort that will result in the opening of a Raymond Floyd golf course on the city's south side in the spring or summer of 2006.

"This signature golf course will give us the tools to attract new visitors and new businesses to help spur the economic growth of the community," says Don Luy, the outgoing president of the district's board of commissioners.

The project is being funded with proceeds from the sale of Faries Park and Golf Course and portions of Brush College Park to the Archer Daniels Midland Company. In addition, those proceeds will fund "Parks & Recreation 2010," an initiative to improve existing park facilities and acquire new land.

New Commissioner at Bolingbrook

The Bolingbrook Park District Board of Commissioners appointed Dave Piekarski as a new member this May. Piekarski, a twelve-year Bolingbrook resident was selected from a field of 22 candidates to serve out the remainder of Commissioner Bill Werth's term. Werth, who had served on the board for 15 years, resigned his position in April.

Piekarski has been the general manager of Apria Healthcare for 20 years. He is on the board of the Bolingbrook community basketball organisation and has been involved with Friends of the Parks.

Piekarski will serve until April 2005, at which time he will be up for election for a four-year term.

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