Naperville parks board hopes to ease tensions

Naperville Park District commissioners are hoping their board development process will result in a code of conduct and direction for the future.

Consultant Joseph McLennan gave an update to the park board Thursday on his progress interviewing staff and commissioners and said these goals came up frequently.

The board has a history of infighting and is undergoing the process in order to improve communication and conflict resolution skills.

"You've had a history of tumult in this organization for at least the last nine years so that's a challenge for staff in terms of their ability, 'Who do I look to for leadership that is going to be around for some time?' " McLennan said.

Commissioner Mary Wright suggested working on staff morale too, but McLennan said he'd like to focus on the board first.

"What I hear from staff is if we have confidence that the board trusts us, that (they) have a good working relationship with us, morale will be a dividend from that directly," he said.

The board will work out its issues at a retreat, possibly in late July. Wright and commissioner Ron Ory are on a committee to hash out the details of the retreat. Wright said she would prefer for the board to spend several days together instead of just a couple hours at a time but McLennan said scheduling might be an issue.

But before they proceed, commissioners decided to work out the details of McLennan's contract, scope of work and a confidentiality agreement. They'll likely discuss the issue when they meet again July 10.