Increased parking is poor land use

It is illogical to increase parking in Breezewald Park, because it already has more parking per acre than Paulus Park as well as 25 other parks in the village.

Advancing with the plan to add eight parking spaces defies the real estate law of gravity. It goes against the highest and best use of land as well as the village’s Comprehensive Plan and the Downtown Redevelopment Perspective. Both documents echo the goal of increasing pedestrian circulation throughout downtown Lake Zurich and enhance walkability. Additionally, this plan needlessly jeopardizes historic White Oak trees and neglects the opportunity to secure more optimal parking spaces around the downtown area.

There is unused parking around downtown that could be available. Thus, renewed efforts should be made to secure other nearby parking spaces before paving over parkland and endangering two old oak trees. At a minimum, the Village could act to waive real estate taxes on private property if there is parking that could be used to serve patrons visiting Breezewald Park or Sunset Pavilion.

Sunset Pavilion, with its seasonal concerts, represents a critical means of meeting and exceeding walkability goals. Most important is that this calendar-limited enterprise (which is only open five months a year) will attract patrons who are glad to walk through downtown, becoming more familiar with its amenities, all before reaching Sunset Pavilion.

No reasonable justification exists for permanently destroying parkland for parking. There is a significant opportunity to leverage Breezewald Park’s beauty as an attraction, using dispersed parking lots, luring patrons to walk through downtown.

Because the proposed changes to Breezewald Park will be permanent, I urge the village to authorize a 90-day delay in order to reevaluate the possibility of acquiring parking spaces through some other means.

Martin F. Jablonski

Lake Zurich