Park Tax Hike Before Elmhurst Voters

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst Park District voters are set to decide in November whether to hike their taxes for park improvements, such as a new community center.

The property tax increase is projected to cost $317 a year for the owner of a house valued at $500,000, which is close to Elmhurst's median.

If the referendum is approved, the district could go into debt by $90 million. The tax could last up to 25 years.

In early August, the park board unanimously approved the issue for the Nov. 5 ballot.

The last time the district went to voters for a tax increase was in 1971.

On its website, the park district said it has one of the lowest tax rates among DuPage County's park districts.

According to the ballot language, the district has four projects planned for the money:

• Replacing the Wagner Community Center building and equipping a new community center with a walking and jogging track; courts for pickleball, basketball and volleyball; a multisport indoor artificial athletic field; and space for gymnastics, dance, early childhood activities and other programs. The center was built in the 1950s as an elementary school and later became a junior college before the district bought it and nearby properties.
• Building a bandshell with year-round heated restrooms at Wilder Park.
• Building year-round heated restrooms at Eldridge and Crestview parks and on parkland along the Illinois Prairie Path.
• Converting a grass athletic field to artificial turf at Berens Park.

The Elmhurst Park District makes up 5 percent of the local property tax bill, with the local schools taking up three-fourths.

Five years ago, the district was planning to hold a tax increase referendum to play for park improvements. Based on local feedback, officials planned several projects under the park board's Vision 2020 plan.

The biggest one was an indoor sports facility at the 16-acre Kieft Brothers property at Route 83 and Riverside Drive.

At the time, officials were looking at a few options, with possible tax increases for a $500,000 house ranging from $140 to $562.

The plans, however, fizzled with the onset of the pandemic.

This week, the board of the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce and Industry endorsed the referendum.

In the coming weeks, the park district plans three open houses about the referendum at the Wagner Community Center. They are on Sept. 28, Oct. 15 and Oct. 22. A Zoom session is set for Sept. 25. The details are on the district's website.

The park district stresses on its website that it is entirely separate from the Elmhurst city government.

In most states, municipalities take care of parks. However, in many places in Illinois, a separate government body handles that function.