Berens Park Amenity To Be Refurbished

ELMHURST, IL – The Elmhurst Park District is looking to spend $1.2 million to renovate the dozen tennis courts at Berens Park.

On Monday, the park board plans to vote on paying the low bidder, Lake Zurich-based Chicagoland Paving Contractors, to do the work.

In a memo released Thursday, Jim Rogers, the park district's executive director, said the Berens courts are showing their wear and age, requiring a full replacement.

The project includes a realignment of the west pathway, central promenade and east basketball area. It will also involve upgrading the 25-year-old lighting system and installing new shade structures and seating within the central promenade, the memo said.

In 2004, the district installed a temporary asphalt overlay to address cracking in the courts. And in 2017, the district added a protective layer to the asphalt, according to the memo.

"The previous improvements were not inadequate, as the District has utilized the courts for nearly ten years from the most recent repair," Rogers said in the memo.

He said Chicagoland Paving Contractors successfully completed renovations of the Wilder Park north tennis courts in 2022 and south tennis courts in 2023.

A review of state Department of Labor records found no violations by the contractor, Rogers said.

Recently, the park district said it planned to bring back the mini-golf course at Berens Park, which it closed in fall 2024.