After multiple public meetings and an online survey, Upland Design and Naperville Park District staff presented the Southwest Community Park Master Plan to the board of commissioners.
The board gave their approval to move forward with Phase I of the project on the south side of Wolf’s Crossing Road, which is mostly unchanged from the last public meeting.
The only major changes were the removal of the amphitheater and the addition of a sand volleyball court to go along with public favorites like a ninja course, a splash pad, and 1.78 miles of trails.
The next step for park district staff is to work on the architectural and engineering specifics of the project with a rough timeline for Phase I already taking shape.
“And if there’s an interest to proceed with the project, we’d be ready to possibly break ground in the summer of 2019 and the project could be completed as early as summer of 2020,” said Eric Shutes, the director of planning for the Naperville Park District.
The design team received almost 1000 responses to their survey. Upland Design’s Principle Landscape Architect Michelle Kelly said the wide range of possibilities are what garnered so much attention to the park design.
“You know, it’s a blank slate,” said Kelly. “It’s 33 acres that is farm field right now. But it’s surrounded by people’s houses and so I think because it was a blank slate, it kind of got everybody excited, like ‘what could we do?’”
And though public input showed major interest in an indoor pool and aquatic center, Park District Executive Director Ray McGury said it might not be financially possible in this park.
“You cannot sustain an aquatic center only, without having a building around it to support the aquatics function,” said McGury.
But McGury did say they are trying their best to accommodate an indoor water facility in future budgets.
Naperville News 17’s Casey Krajewski reports.
