Campton Hills' plan to make parks
Campton Hills will acquire land for public parks under a new ordinance that forces developers to foot the bill.
What hasn't been decided is whether the village will manage its own parks indefinitely or turn to Campton Township officials to possibly establish some sort of joint parks system, village Trustee Jim Kopec said Wednesday.
"The township basically has the same problem (we do)," he said. "They're land-rich but cash-poor. In other words, you've got the land but you don't necessarily have the cash to develop it."
Campton Hills village board voted 4-0 late Tuesday in favor of an ordinance requiring developers to give the village 10½ acres for every 1,000 new residents their subdivisions are expected to generate.
The law, which takes effect immediately, also gives developers the option of paying $195,000 in lieu of each acre they would otherwise relinquish to the village.
Kopec said trustees specifically included language allowing cash donations to be used for parks or recreation purposes in the hopes of not only acquiring property but funds for upkeep and development. For now, all land donations will remain the village's responsibility, he said.
"Because we don't have a park district per se, we will have to decide how it's going to be managed," Kopec said. "We have the ability to develop a park system if that's what we decide to do."
The parks ordinance mirrors one approved earlier this year related to developer donations for local schools. The parks law was added in response to an advisory referendum last spring in which 57 percent of village voters said they want developers to provide park space.
Kopec said the village's next step might be approaching township leaders about an agreement where the municipalities could potentially share open space responsibilities.
While both local governments have made acquiring park land a priority, residents have made clear in surveys over the years that they are not interested in creating a property tax-funded park district. Kopec said such a move still isn't an option.
"There's no need for it," he said.