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Governor's Conference
by A highly successful Governor's Conference on New Horizons for Conservation, Parks and Recreation was held March 26-28, 1992, in Springfield, Illinois. The Conference, sponsored by the Illinois Association of Park Districts (IAPD) and the Illinois Department of Conservation (IDOC), was the realization of a campaign pledge by Governor Jim Edgar to convene a Governor's Conference. The purpose of the Conference was to identify future trends, challenges and issues affecting conservation, parks and recreation and to develop recommendations to address the challenges and issues. Judy Beck, IAPD Vice President and Commissioner from the Glenview Park District, stated,"... This is one of the most meaningful and successful conferences I ever attended." Ron Lehman, President of IAPD (Commissioner, Channahon Park District) believes all Illinois commissioners and professionals in parks, recreation and conservation should study the final report that will be released next month on this highly productive Governor's Conference. The Conference's 300 plus participants, representing 92 associations and organizations, included elected park and recreation officials; park, recreation, conservation and natural resource professionals; and sportsmen, environmental and preservation group leaders. The following is a sampling of the recommendations made by Conference participants. A complete list of findings and recommendations will be available through the IAPD. The IAPD is also making available a video on the Conference, including the keynote speakers, who were internationally recognized futurists. Park and recreation boards and professionals planning for the future should make the summary publication and video a part of their future planning programs and library resources. Selected Recommendations - Restore the non-referendum bonding authority of park districts. - Discontinue the property tax cap. - Enact a new source of permanent funding other than the property tax for capital funding for park districts. - Target statewide "greenbelt" areas and provide funding incentives (50/50) for local agencies to acquire these natural resources. - Communicate to legislators, staff and the public that park districts, in total, are the largest unit of government which receives no direct State aid. - Develop partnerships with other public agencies such as school-village, approach service clubs, create friends of the park groups, establish trusts, develop corporate sponsorship of programs, seek in-kind services, take advantage of local, state, regional and state tourism programs. - Create foundations, solicit donations for scholarships, seek grants, solicit donations from wills/bequests and private foundations. - Develop revenue policies with innovative approaches, increase use and impact fees, demand impact fees from developers, develop new ideas of park use, develop revenue-producing facilities, i.e., golf course/aquatics center/day care center. - Promote volunteerism and public support. Create "friends" organizations, develop dis-
trict-wide volunteer efforts, get kids involved in local programs, devise local issues-rally support and implement plans, adopt a park and set up environmental advisory council. - Expand and improve education programs, develop skills for effective use of leisure time, establish specific programs and develop environmental awareness programs. - Move to environmentally safe treatment of resources, research and implement alternatives to chemical pesticides, establish park district environmental policies, hold public hearings as needed. - Develop community-based comprehensive plans. - Change perceptions by informing the public of social, economic and human benefits of park district programs. - Assess and reformulate mission statements to reflect an understanding of the changing roles of park and recreation agencies and train staff accordingly. - Develop a statewide greenways plan, i.e., Illinois River and its tributaries. - Develop a more effective volunteer base. - Pursue alternate sources of revenue, including legislative (video rental tax, casino tax) and non-legislative (concessions). - Initiate and improve cooperative relationships, including private-public partnerships and public-public partnerships. - Lobby the General Assembly to get dedicated funding for conservation efforts similar to Missouri's dedicated sales tax funding. - Emphasize ecosystem management and education. - Attach impact fees to all capital projects such as airports, roads, buildings, etc. - Establish entrance fees to parks with the money earmarked for conservation. - Establish more conservation districts. - Develop methods to share revenue with nonprofit organizations to do conservation work. - Increase the amount of natural areas held in public trust (pursue large scale restoration and major land acquisition funding initiatives at the state and local level). - Legislate land use regulations on the state and/or regional level. - Build new funding sources statewide through development of a head tax, natural resource depletion tax and tax on production or selling of outdoor recreation equipment. - Implement a user fee that fairly assesses all natural resource users, both consumptive and non-consumptive, for the support of natural resources. - Identify potential greenways/trail corridors and initiate acquisition/protection prior to population shifts. - Demonstrate to adjacent landowners the value of greenways/trails in community economic development. - State agencies should pursue dialogue with utility companies to create greenway opportunities. - Counties should adopt comprehensive zoning plans to include floodplains/corridors. - Develop innovative approaches to provide trail/corridor opportunities (use levies, railroad donations, lease backs) to assist landowners. - Initiate partnerships which encourage strategic fund raising which utilizes endowments, and land and matching cash donations. - Create flexible job and program opportunities to access the resources of women entering the work force. - Investigate joint cooperative planning, development, and use of facilities for school districts, libraries and park districts or any local government. - Educate the community to the benefits of park districts, and how they enhance quality of life.
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