Seeds of worry planted in minds of park gardeners

The fate of the Naperville's garden plots was on the minds of many of the residents who attended a meeting Thursday to discuss recommendations for the Caroline Martin Mitchell land.

Park and school officials are considering converting some of the Naperville Park District's garden plots to athletic fields, although they would add garden plots both at the current location and an additional site.

It's one of the few changes being discussed for the 212-acre site near Aurora Avenue and West Street donated by Martin Mitchell in 1936 for public uses.

Under the proposal, a portion of the northern garden plots on the site would become athletic fields both for the public and Naperville Central High School. About 140 new plots would be created on the south side of the site and up to 330 more at the DuPage River Park on the south side of the city along Royce Road, according to Brad Wilson, director of recreation for the park district. In total, there would be a net gain of 100 plots.

But numerous longtime gardeners attending Thursday's meeting expressed concern about having to change plots they've worked on for years and asked questions about issues such as soil quality, proximity to the river, parking and accessibility of the new plots proposed.

"The people who have had their same garden plots for years have cultivated the soil for good production and it may take a few years for the new land to get up to the same quality," resident Cynthia Schneider said.

Wilson said some of the specific details residents were asking about had not yet been studied and he stressed that the proposal is just a starting point for discussion

"We fully intend to have a much more extensive community input process engaging all of the gardeners in the upcoming months to really talk through these ideas and concepts a lot further and get your opinions," he said.

The Martin Mitchell site also includes Naper Settlement, Knoch Park, Von Oven Scout Reservation, Naperville Sportsman's Club, Naperville Cemetery and part of the Edward Hospital campus.

Planners spent 18 months studying possible reconfigurations for the land but found little support among these stakeholders for any major changes.

"If we were to identify a common theme between the landowner, lease tenant and stakeholder comments, it was to minimize cost, maximize efficiencies, keep open space and maintain existing community amenities," said community planner Amy Emery.

Instead of rearranging the site, city planners are suggesting some smaller enhancements including increased signage, fencing, trails, gathering spaces and area events. They would also like for any future changes in land use to be evaluated with the entire site in mind.

The groups say the process has increased collaboration among them, such as the partnership between park and school officials to address a shortage of athletic fields.

Some residents at Thursday's meeting also expressed concern about traffic congestion and parking around the Martin Mitchell campus, especially near Naperville Central which will soon undergo an $87.7 million renovation.

Craig Williams, chief information officer for District 203, said traffic studies are under way and the district with work with its neighbors as it finalizes its plans.

Emery said the city will update the plan based on Thursday's feedback, then present it to the city council, park board and school board for further review.

The full plan is available at www.naperville.il.us/mitchell.aspx.