Thanks to a grant from the State of Illinois, the Community Park District of La Grange Park will see one of its larger parks get a much-needed renovation.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) awarded the Park District a $600,000 Open Space Land Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grant to completely rebuild William G. Yena Park, 1423 Raymond Ave.
“We needed this funding because we issued some non-referendum bonds back in 2021,” Jessica Cannaday, park district executive director, said. “We issued about $1.2 million. Six hundred thousand was allocated for Beach Oak Park and the other $600,000 was earmarked for Yena.”
OSLAD grants are matching grants that require local governments to come up with an equal amount and have to be applied for every year.
More Top Picks Paddle Board
“We applied for OSLAD last year and didn’t get it,” Cannaday said. “When we found out funding was going to be available again we decided to throw our hat in the ring one more time because this is the last opportunity for matching funding. We have to, by law, have that other part spent by December.”
Cannaday said that the $1.2 million project would involve Yena being “completely demolished and rebuilt.”
According to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Jan. 30 news release, OSLAD grants have been awarded since 1986 and this year’s awards provide grants for nearly $55 million to 111 different local park projects throughout the state. Since its inception, OSLAD grants have awarded almost $585 million to local park projects. The goal of the grants is to provide safe outdoor activity, and as IDNR Director Natalie Phelps Finnie noted in the press release, “83 % of Illinoisans consider access to outdoor recreational opportunities important for them and their families. And studies show time and again that getting outside leads to better overall health.”
A 2021 comprehensive park inventory and assessment showed Yena Park being the lowest-rated park district facility in the village, with Beach Oak Park being the only park rated lower. Beach Oak Park is currently being renovated and will have its grand reopening by the spring of this year. Yena Park’s renovation will be completed in the spring of 2025 when the park will have its grand reopening.
The Park District reached out to the community for input on the plan for Yena, adding designated pickleball and nature-based play spaces when the plan was re-submitted. The community groups included the La Grange Park Little League, School Districts 95 and 102, the Chamber of Commerce, Arbor Advocates, and others.
The final plan calls for the preservation of existing trees, additional water fountains, complete athletic field renovations, complete tennis court renovations, and a walking path surrounding the entire park perimeter. Improvements will also be made to make Yena more ADA-accessible.
Cannaday stressed that while the district was able to provide the matching funds—and the required shovel-ready project for this project—the need still exists for other sources of revenue for the park district’s capital projects.
“With La Grange Park having one of the lowest park district tax rates in suburban Cook County, we really depend on grant money to supplement our capital funds,” she said. “Less than 50 % of our operations come from tax dollars, while the rest come from our program fees.”
Cannaday is especially excited about the coming improvements for ADA compatibility with Yena, especially for the playing fields.
“It’s going to be accessible for the first time in the history of the park,” she said. “Right now the baseball fields and soccer fields don’t have an accessible pathway, so if you’re a grandparent that uses a walker or is in a wheelchair, you can’t watch your kids play baseball, softball, or soccer.”
Hank Beckman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.