Oak Park’s operating departments, including police, public health, public works, fire, development services and neighborhood services, are asking for more money in fiscal year 2025.
The first draft of the proposed 2025 budget, according to Interim Chief Financial Officer Donna Gayden, has expenditures and revenue each at about $87 million. That’s up about $4.8 million from 2024. That increase includes cost of living adjustments, one-time expenses and village board goals.
Gayden will present the full budget to the village board on Nov. 19. Trustees are expected to approve a finalized budget Dec. 3.
Police
The Oak Park Police Department provides law enforcement services to the community. The budget for this department is proposed at $29 million in 2025, up from $28.7 million in 2024. It has the largest proposed total budget of the village’s operating departments.
Those changes are a result of salary and pension increases, background check costs and uniform pricing. The department is also recommending moving parking enforcement responsibilities to development services and eliminating two other positions. Police Chief Shatonya Johnson said the department has 82 officers, down lower from earlier this year. Police are budgeted for 118 officers.
“I am anticipating and working diligently to secure full staffing by the end of next year,” Johnson told the board.
In 2025, Johnson said the department plans to continue executing the recommendations in the BerryDunn Community Safety study, expand community engagement, implement crime reduction strategies, continue the alternative response to calls for service pilot program and gain a new record management system.
Public Health
The Public Health Department works to respond to community health needs by preventing injuries, promoting health and protecting residents and employees. It’s been a state-certified local health department for 75 years.
The proposed budget for this department is $1.4 million for the general fund and $134,501 for the farmers’ market. These numbers are up from almost $1.2 million and $114,659 in 2024.
“This may be the first time in the last four years since 2020 that this department has not been responding to a declared public health emergency,” Interim Public Health Director Lisa Shelley said.
But, Trustee Susan Buchanan said, “I’m concerned about a 25% increase in the public health budget in a time when there isn’t a pandemic.”
A few key increases in 2025 are $20,000 for an annual health survey, $25,000 for a consultant to help start the IPLAN process, an assessment required to maintain certification, and $57,000 for additional inspection and rat control work.
In 2025, key priorities include administrative work, rodent control, emergency preparedness, health programming, nursing and the farmers’ market.
Trustee Cory Wesley said he’d be willing to contribute even more money toward animal control services, given resident concerns about the rat population.
“That’s impossible to remove all of them,” he said. “But I’d like to remove as many as possible.”
Public Works
The Public Works Department takes care of infrastructure including street maintenance, safe drinking water, sewer collection, capital improvements, forestry, refuse and recycling and traffic lights. This department is also responsible for municipal facilities and equipment.
The proposed budget for this department from the general fund is $8 million, up from $7.8 million in 2024. For the environmental services fund, the department budgets about $5.2 million, up from $4.9 million in 2024. And for the water and sewer fund, public works is budgeting $27.7 million, down from $29.9 million in 2024.
The Public Works Department has nine divisions. Three of them – administration, streets, and water and sewer – have a reduction in their recommended budget for 2025 compared to 2024. The other six have increased asks, the largest percentage increase at about 7.4%.
In 2025, Public Works Director Rob Sproule said the department hopes to implement recommendations from Vision Zero, construct neighborhood greenways, promote the village’s composting program, update tree ordinances, improve snow mitigation, and repair street lights and traffic signals.
Fire
The Oak Park Fire Department works to provide emergency medical and fire suppression services as well as fire prevention work, public education and code enforcement.
The budget for this department is proposed at $20.2 million, up from $19.5 million in 2024.
Those increases are mostly due to pension increases, salary changes and billing costs.
Fire Chief Ronald Kobyleski said the priorities for 2025 are updating station one washrooms, conducting a space study of station two, remodeling station three, ordering a new ladder truck and purchasing individual thermal cameras.
Development Services
The development services department, led by Emily Egan, works to “enhance the quality of life” in Oak Park through customer service efforts. This includes dealing with permitting, planning, zoning, historic preservation and businesses.
The budget for this department is proposed at $14.1 million, up from $13.6 million in 2024.
This department has five divisions, and each is asking for an increase in the 2025 budget. For the administration, permits and development, and parking and mobility divisions, those are slight increases.
But the business services division is asking for a 25% increase in its budget related mostly to the Renew the Avenue business assistance grant programs. And the planning and urban design division is asking for a 93% increase in its budget. That’s mostly due to the Roosevelt Road corridor plan, zoning map updates and comprehensive plan work, Egan said.
The development services department also partners with three agencies who receive funding from the village government: Visit Oak Park, the Downtown Oak Park Business Alliance, and the Oak Park Area Arts Council.
The first two are requesting the same funding amounts as received in 2024. But the arts council is asking for $15,000 more. Goals for this partner in 2025 include expanding the Off the Wall summer youth program and reopening an art gallery space at Village Hall.
Neighborhood Services
The Neighborhood Services Department develops housing programs and provides grants to low- to moderate-income households.
The proposed budget for 2025 is $2.9 million, up from $2.2 million in 2024. That increase is due to salary and benefit increases, supplies and contracted services.
In 2025, the department heads want to help implement the alternative response to calls for services, propose homeownership programs to the board, review other housing programs and implement recommendations from the fair housing test.
This department has five divisions, all of which are asking for more money in 2025.
Trustees are expected to discuss administrative department budgets Nov. 4.