A request last month for an all-weather turf field in Taylor Park, backed up by hundreds of Oak Parkers, had park district board members contemplating a district-wide study on park usage at their meeting Thursday.
On Nov. 18 Dan Jordan, Oak Park’s regional commissioner of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO), sent a letter to park district Executive Director Gary Balling “formally requesting that the Park District reopen the Master Plan for Taylor Park to consider alternatives for renovations to the athletic field.”
Alternatives include the possibility of installing a full-size, all-weather, multipurpose turf field, the letter said.
The request stems from increasing demand for AYSO’s programs beyond available field space. Oak Park AYSO has partnered with Elmwood Park AYSO and River Forest Youth Soccer, and they’ve also rented turf fields in Berwyn, Forest Park and Chicago to meet their needs, the letter said.
Jordan goes on to say Taylor Park is the only space large enough in the village for a field that is not also dedicated to baseball. The field would relieve pressure on others in the system, and Oak Park AYSO would help fund renovation costs to create it.
“Our board also pledges to become actively involved in planning activities and meetings … and in promoting the value of this in public,” the letter said.
Balling said Jordan turned in a petition with 529 signatures asking for improvements to the Taylor Park field.
Some board members were concerned that reopening the master plan would set a bad precedent for future improvement suggestions.
Board Vice President Christine Graves said what needs to be created instead is a master plan for the whole system to assess the future of each of its elements, like individual sports.
The current conditions and usages of all the fields should be evaluated before any improvements are made, said board Treasurer Jessica Bullock.
A mechanism for the public to address changes they would like to see must also be created, Graves added.
The board will discuss the matter again at its Jan. 12 committee of the whole meeting, Balling said.