What's Happening!

Dear Alsip Park District Resident,

I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on some projects that are occurring at the Alsip Park District.

As you may know have heard, the Alsip Park District was awarded an Open Space Land Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) Grant through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources the Spring of 2009. This grant makes it feasiblefor us to redevelop the underutilized 15 acre Sears Park site into a much more usable space for the community. Since we learned that we were awarded the grant, the park district has been busy preparing construction and bid documents. In October 2009, the park district awarded the work at this park site to Fuerte Systems. Fuerte Systems has started work at Sears Park and plans to work any chance they get, weather permitting of course.

For the safety of our residents, Sears Park will remain closed during the redevelopment of this site. The redevelopment of this park site will include a lighted walking path with fitness stations, a lighed multi-purpose field for soccer and football usage, ball field reconstruction, much needed security lighting, additional parking, a park shelter with picnic tables, a new play area, site amenities such as park benches and an excavated pond with an overlook and water feature. Weather permitting; Sears Park is scheduled to reopen this fall.

As the work progresses at Sears Park, we will also begin to perform some much needed landscape improvements at Commissioners Park and the Mary J. Lynch Skate Park. These landscape improvements will include the reformation of the existing berms at these two park sites. Material will be added to the berms to assist with easier maintenance and upkeep of these areas while also enhancing the appearance of each site. These landscape improvements will begin the week of February 22, 2010. Each park site will remain open during this work but for your safety, sections may be closed off for short periods of time to allow for this work to be completed.

I am pleased to report on these projects and just wanted to take an opportunity to update you, our residents. We will continue to make updates on our webpage at www.alsipparks.org so please check back often. If you have any questions at anytime please feel free to contact me at 708-389-1003. Thank you for your continued support of the Alsip Park District.

Sincerely,
Jeannette Huber, CPRP
Director of Parks and Recreation

Redevelopment of Sears Park
The Alsip Park District Board of Commissioners and Staff are proud to report on the Re-Development of Sears Park. This summer work has begun internally at the park site. The park contracted with Tri-State Disposal to demolish the building located at 3505 West 123rd Street and the parks department staff began to remove old fences, ball field material, trees, and curbing plus the pond was drained and will later be dredged and cleaned up to create a better environment for wildlife. The fish that were in the pond were saved and relocated to Commissioners Park. All material was recycled. For example, the ball field material from Sears Park was used to re-crown all four ball fields at Prairie Ball Fields so the Girls Softball Teams will enjoy updated fields in the 2010 season. We are extremely proud and happy to report that the in house work that was completed by our parks department saved our taxpayers much money as the cost to perform the work in house was much less than contracting it out to another company. We would like to commend our Parks Department Staff for a job well done as well as thank the following agencies for their assistance in the donation of equipment: The Village of Alsip Public Works Department, Tri-State Disposal, the Village of Bridgeview, and the Village of Hickory Hills.

Sears Park Redevelopment
Currently the construction documents have been completed ad the park is preparing to move forward with the actual redevelopment of this park site. Sears Park improvements will include a lighted walking path with fitness stations, a lighted multi-purpose field for soccer and football usage and spectator seating, which will become the home field for the Alsip Falcons, additional parking, a park shelter with picnic tables, a new rock climbing play area, a renovated pond with a water feature, an overlook to the pond for easy fishing access and a new softball field with player benches. The Park Board Commissioners and Staff are extremely excited to bring this underutilized park site back to life for our residents. With the assistance of an OSLAD Grant from the IDNR, construction proposed to be completed by the Fall of 2010.

Thanks to Vince Cullen and the Village of Alsip Public Works Department
The Alsip Park District would like to extend a BIG THANK YOU to Vince Cullen and the Village of Alsip Public Works Department. We have always enjoyed the great working relationship that we have with all officials and staff of the Village of Alsip and more recently one individual has helped us out very much. Vince and his staff are always there when a friendly, helping hand is needed. They have provided street maps for our use in the development of the Alsip Park District Bike Plan, have volunteered their own time in an advisory capacity for the Bike Plan, have offered assistance in the planning for the Cal-Sag Trail and as recently as this summer, donated much needed sand that will be used at the Sand Volleyball Courts at Commissioners Park as well as let the Park District borrow equipment to aid in the clean up of the pond at Sears Park. We are grateful to Vince and his staff for their assistance and proud to call them our friends!

Reconstruction of the Cart Paths at Fountain Hills
We are pleased to announce that cart paths are being reconstructed at the Fountain Hills Golf Club. No more dust from the gravel when you drive the course! What’s even better is that this project is being completed through recycled asphalt. The asphalt is being grinded down and spread through the course to create a paved path for our golfers to enjoy. This is a three phase process which will save the park district much money while offering an improvement to one of our facilities.

New Short Game Practice Area
We are also are pleased to announce that the new practice short game area has been added to the Fountain Hills Golf Club. This amenity will enhance the existing 30 station lighted driving range. If you are looking for a place to work on your short game after you have hit at the range this is the perfect location. We will also continue to program with golf lessons and clinics. After you have completed your practice routine we encourage you to enjoy lunch or dinner at the Clubhouse. Fountain Hills Golf Club is open year round for all your golfing needs. We offer a full service pro shop, bar area and restaurant. Don’t get the winter blues….we are open year round so you can enjoy a round of golf anytime this Winter!

Community Service by the Soul Patrol Team
We would like to extend Thank You to the Soul Patrol Team at the Lighthouse Church in Alsip. For the last several years these individuals have completed community service projects in the area and the Alsip Park District has been a recipient of their generous service. This past summer they assisted the park district with clean up duties at Commissioners Park. We are extremely grateful for their commitment to the Alsip Park District and for the community service that they display with each task.

Alsip Park District and Active Transportation Alliance Bike Plan
The Alsip Park District continues to work with Active Transportation Alliance to create a Bike Plan for the Alsip Park District. As we have learned, agencies that complete good bike plans and implement them win safer streets, healthier residents, stronger local economies, and overall a higher quality of life. Plus, they are simply more fun to live in. Another Public Meeting for this Bike Plan was held in September at the Apollo Recreation Center. At this meeting we reviewed the proposed network, discussed the different facilities recommended, answered questions, and gathered comments and suggestions for final tweaks and polish to the plan. Once the district has a final plan we will share the results and plan of action. We would like to extend a thank you to those individuals that were in attendance.

Remember to "Take Time for Fun" at the Alsip Park District!