Dundee park users want trails, open space and rec facilities to the west

Dundee Township Park District residents want additional walking trails, more open space and fitness and aquatic facilities on the district's west side, according to results from a recent communitywide survey.

Park district officials late last year conducted the first resident survey in almost two decades, asking residents to rate facilities and programs and also offer feedback on customer service and future projects. Input from the direct mail and Internet-based survey will help focus the park district's spending, district officials said.

"We have a benchmark now that we can use in the future," Park District Executive Director Tom Mammoser said. "There will be decisions made over the next several years on how resources will be used and this will be a helpful document."

About 620 residents responded to the survey, which was conducted by St. Francis University's Solutions Resource Center. A selection of park district residents received the survey in the mail, while others logged on to a Web site to answer a four-page questionnaire.

Overall, participants rated the park district's facilities and programs as good and excellent and about 95 percent of respondents considered the park district a valuable asset to the community.

While trails, open space and fitness facilities west of the Fox River were top priorities, tennis courts were the lowest items of interest. In addition, future uses for the Bonnie Dundee Golf Course received mixed opinions, but a majority of participants said they would like to see the facility remain as an 18-hole golf course.

"The survey has given us some immediate areas where we can start to make changes in order to meet what the community would like," Mammoser said. "Walking trails were perceived as the greatest need or desire. We may be able to accommodate those trails in the shorter term than we could a west-side fitness facility."

The existing recreation and fitness facility, at 665 Barrington Ave. in Carpentersville, was built in 1989 when the district served a population of 39,000. Today more than 53,000 live in the district, Mammoser estimates.