Should the Glen Ellyn park board have said 'no'?

Just say no.

That's what some Glen Ellyn park commissioners will tell you the board should have said when the citizenry started asking for more amenities in their new recreation center - after voters had approved a $7.4 million project.

Instead, board members, who now comprise a narrow majority, took the tack that it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission. As a result, the new Ackerman Sports and Fitness Center that's being unveiled to the public Saturday is now a state-of-the-art, $11.2 million gem.

How the park district ended up spending 51 percent more than voters approved is well-documented by reporter Marco Santana on the front page of our print editions.

The story chronicles how residents voted more than three years ago to spend $7.4 million for the new rec center. But after that approval, people started coming up with many and varied suggestions: An indoor soccer field, as envisioned, would be too small. So it was substantially bumped up in size. Rock-climbing walls were added. The size of building itself grew appreciably as new things were added - from 44,000 square feet to 67,000 square feet. Or to 88,000 square feet, depending on whom you talk to.

That's the real nuance to this story. Three new park board members, elected in April, took their seats in the middle of construction. They started asking questions, and didn't like all the answers they were getting. The result is a story in which people on the same elected board can't agree on the size of their new building. The actual cost of the place is in dispute, too.

Some ugly park board meetings were chronicled, too. At one, a newbie park commissioner gave a public vote of no confidence to the park executive director, only to be publicly upbraided by another commissioner for doing so.

The longer-entrenched incumbents say they have nothing to apologize for; they were only trying to fulfill the wishes of the community. They also note that some unforeseen things added expense, such as omission of the limestone base beneath the new indoor soccer field, and that they haven't given up hopes of recouping some of those costs. There are other funds that will be recovered, such as those from the Western DuPage Special Recreation Association, which is getting $900,000 worth of offices and storage space.

So, what's a newspaper to do when two factions disagree so clearly and vehemently on the things right in front of their eyes? Hey, we simply lay it all out as best we can and let our readers decide: Was the park board and administration just being responsive to the needs of the community by adding all the new amenities? Or were they poor stewards of the taxpayers' money? Both views, I think, are well-represented in Santana's story.

There's another component. One of the missions of a local newspaper is to provide all the details when a gleaming new public facility comes to life. So, inside today's Neighbor section, you'll see another story (our Neighbor desk called it "the happy story") detailing all the cool amenities the new sports center will offer.

If you're interested in that - or the highly charged debate over the spending of tax dollars - check out the stories and decide for yourself. Executive Director Cory Atwell told Santana he awaits the court of public opinion on whether the extra cost of the recreation center was worth it.

There's little doubt the soccer moms and dads and others who lobbied for the upgrades will support the decision. But perhaps those of you who voted for the project but didn't ask for more might want to pop in on Saturday's open house and see what you think of having an extra $3.8 million or so put into the facility.

We're not trying to judge - just telling the story.

jdavis@dailyherald.com

Just say no.

That's what some Glen Ellyn park commissioners will tell you the board should have said when the citizenry started asking for more amenities in their new recreation center - after voters had approved a $7.4 million project.

Instead, board members, who now comprise a narrow majority, took the tack that it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission. As a result, the new Ackerman Sports and Fitness Center that's being unveiled to the public Saturday is now a state-of-the-art, $11.2 million gem.

How the park district ended up spending 51 percent more than voters approved is well-documented by reporter Marco Santana on the front page of our print editions.

The story chronicles how residents voted more than three years ago to spend $7.4 million for the new rec center. But after that approval, people started coming up with many and varied suggestions: An indoor soccer field, as envisioned, would be too small. So it was substantially bumped up in size. Rock-climbing walls were added. The size of building itself grew appreciably as new things were added - from 44,000 square feet to 67,000 square feet. Or to 88,000 square feet, depending on whom you talk to.

That's the real nuance to this story. Three new park board members, elected in April, took their seats in the middle of construction. They started asking questions, and didn't like all the answers they were getting. The result is a story in which people on the same elected board can't agree on the size of their new building. The actual cost of the place is in dispute, too.

Some ugly park board meetings were chronicled, too. At one, a newbie park commissioner gave a public vote of no confidence to the park executive director, only to be publicly upbraided by another commissioner for doing so.

The longer-entrenched incumbents say they have nothing to apologize for; they were only trying to fulfill the wishes of the community. They also note that some unforeseen things added expense, such as omission of the limestone base beneath the new indoor soccer field, and that they haven't given up hopes of recouping some of those costs. There are other funds that will be recovered, such as those from the Western DuPage Special Recreation Association, which is getting $900,000 worth of offices and storage space.

So, what's a newspaper to do when two factions disagree so clearly and vehemently on the things right in front of their eyes? Hey, we simply lay it all out as best we can and let our readers decide: Was the park board and administration just being responsive to the needs of the community by adding all the new amenities? Or were they poor stewards of the taxpayers' money? Both views, I think, are well-represented in Santana's story.

There's another component. One of the missions of a local newspaper is to provide all the details when a gleaming new public facility comes to life. So, inside today's Neighbor section, you'll see another story (our Neighbor desk called it "the happy story") detailing all the cool amenities the new sports center will offer.

If you're interested in that - or the highly charged debate over the spending of tax dollars - check out the stories and decide for yourself. Executive Director Cory Atwell told Santana he awaits the court of public opinion on whether the extra cost of the recreation center was worth it.

There's little doubt the soccer moms and dads and others who lobbied for the upgrades will support the decision. But perhaps those of you who voted for the project but didn't ask for more might want to pop in on Saturday's open house and see what you think of having an extra $3.8 million or so put into the facility.

We're not trying to judge - just telling the story.