Pickleball courts, dog parks on Elgin residents' wish list
Pickleball courts, dog parks and the reopening of the Lords Park pool were top wish list items for residents during an Elgin Parks and Recreation Department master plan meeting Wednesday.
About 100 people gathered at the Heritage Ballroom in the Edward Schock Centre of Elgin to give their input as the department solicited public opinion on what should be priorities. The meeting is part of a six-month process that includes an online survey.
Parks and Recreation Director Maria Cumpata said she was pleased with the turnout and the input.
"This gives people an opportunity to voice what their desires are, maybe amenities that we're not offering here in Elgin that they want to have," Cumpata said.
The city is working with SmithGroup, an architectural, engineering and planning firm, to prioritize the desires of residents.
"Our goal is to put together a road map for the park system, facilities and program for the next five to 10 years," said Paul Wiese, vice president of SmithGroup. He said that, especially in the wake of COVID, "everybody has recognized how important parks are."
The group displayed photo boards around the ballroom and encouraged residents to place stickers on elements they considered priorities and leave sticky notes with other suggestions.
Bike trails, meeting spaces, playgrounds, sports courts, special events and issues of sustainability garnered a lot of attention. Many residents came with a specific focus in mind.
Sporting a pickleball T-shirt, Roger Eads was part of a contingent of about 10 people strongly advocating for dedicated outdoor courts. He said he's been pushing for courts in Elgin since 2014 and helped get the indoor courts at the Centre.
He said Elgin, which has no outdoor courts, lags behind smaller neighboring towns like St. Charles, Hoffman Estates, Palatine and Crystal Lake.
Cumpata said input from the survey and meetings could start to show in the budgeting process for 2023, but definitely in 2024 and beyond.
"We as a staff have a pretty good idea of what people want. But it's nice to hear from the members of the community and really get some confirmation that we're all headed in the right area," she said. "But through this process, I'm sure there will be things that come up that we'll look at and scratch our head and say, 'Well, I didn't know that. That would be nice to have in our community.'"