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Celebrating IL Sears created modern retail in Illinois SEE PAGE 4
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VILLAGE NEWS >> NILES
District to find location for baseball field Removal of Oak Park field requires need for new site
BY IGOR STUDENKOV Bugle Staff @BugleNewspapers nweditor@buglenewspapers.com
Now that the baseball diamond in Oak Park has been torn down, the Niles Park District Board of
Commissioners is looking for another park to house it. During the Jan. 9 meeting, the commissioners floated a number of ideas, suggesting existing parks and other land the park district owns; three of those locations were suggested by the Village of Niles. As Commissioner Chris Zalinski and park district Executive Director Tom Elenz explained, they need land that’s at least 150 feet by 150 feet, a playground for younger kids and plenty of parking. In the end,
the board decided to continue the discussion, and isn’t expected to make any decision until spring. As previously reported by the Bugle, in June 2017, the park district put up a baseball diamond at the northeast corner of Oak Park. Because none of the expenses involved were over $25,000, the project flew under the radar. This caused pushback from some of the nearby homeowners, who complained that this was done without any public input. During the June
27 meeting, residents raised concern about its affect on property values and impact on traffic, with some arguing that the northeast corner should be used as a nature area instead. The following month’s meeting, on the other hand, saw a large number of supporters advocating for the field, arguing that it was desperately needed facility that would benefit the community. The situation was complicated by the fact that the park district doesn’t own the land – the Village
of Niles does. Under the terms of its lease, the park district can’t build any “permanent building or structure” on it. In July, Niles village attorney Danielle Grcic issued a “notice of default” to the park district, saying that it violated the lease. And, when it was found that the permits were issued after the field was actually installed, the village revoked them. After months of negotiations, the SEE BASEBALL PAGE 2