Glen Ellyn park officials regrouping after pool referendum defeat

Glen Ellyn Park District officials say they will have to regroup after residents soundly rejected a referendum request for $13.5 million to fund construction of an indoor aquatic complex at the Ackerman Sports & Fitness Center.

Roughly 61 percent of voters on Tuesday opposed the proposal that would have included a main lap pool, a smaller warm water pool, spectator areas, multipurpose space and locker rooms.

"I guess I'd just say we were disappointed," park board President Gary Mayo said. "We thought it would have been a nice addition to the community and the voters have apparently decided they don't want us to spend that money."

"I really thought it would pass and when it didn't and it was defeated by such a large margin, that was certainly a surprise," he said.

Commissioner Kathy Cornell said she also was surprised by the margin of defeat.

"I really thought it was a 50/50 chance and that was just based on anecdotal conversations I had with people," Cornell said.

Commissioner Melissa Creech said she thought the project would have been a "nice asset" for the community, but it also was a "huge expense," which is why the district took the question to voters.

Mayo said the board will discuss the results and "see if we can try to figure out why it didn't pass and whether we want to try to move forward at some later date or just drop the idea."

The one certainty, Mayo said, is that the district doesn't have enough money to move forward on a pool without community support.

"We certainly don't have $13 million sitting in the bank to build a pool," he said. "The only way we could accomplish a project of that magnitude would be to get the approval from the voters to issue bonds."

District officials had been encouraged to put the referendum question to voters by a group of residents that formed the Glen Ellyn Aquatics initiative. The group paid for a feasibility study that showed an indoor pool not only would be used, but the facility would be self-supporting.

If the project had been approved, voters would have not seen an increase in the taxes they pay to the park district because it would have replaced an existing levy that is set to expire. However, residents would not have seen a decrease in their park district taxes as originally scheduled.