Mission Statement:
To provide memorable experiences in parks and recreation that enrich our communities.
Vision Statement:
To uphold our tradition as the provider of choice in parks and recreation for our community.
Approved by the Board of Commissioners
Wheeling Park District Board of
This page intentionally left blank
Five-Year Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan
Capital improvements enhance, expand, or maintain the infrastructure that the District needs to provide services to residents and support new growth and development. To ensure a high quality of services and amenities, infrastructure expansion and improvement must continue as the District’s demographics change and facilities age. The District’s five-year Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan (CRIP) details long-range capital improvement needs by outlining $43,331,809 in infrastructure and equipment replacements and improvements that the District plans to implement during a multi-year period. Similar to the Park and Recreation Comprehensive and Strategic Plans, it is a long-range planning tool that is annually reviewed and modified as funds and priorities change.
Capital Replacement and Improvement Guidelines
• Must have a monetary value of at least $5,000;
• Have a useful life of five years;
• Result in the replacement of a fixed asset, or the creation of a fixed asset.
Included within the above guidelines are the following items:
• Improvements or expansion of existing facilities/parks
• Construction of new facilities
• Purchase, improvement, and development of land
• Operating equipment and machinery for new or expanded facilities
• Planning and engineering costs related to a specific capital replacement or improvement
The first year in the CRIP becomes the capital budget for that fiscal year. Projects slated for subsequent years in the Plan are approved on a planning basis and do not receive funding until they are incorporated into the annual capital budget. Capital budget appropriations diminish at the end of each fiscal year; however, funds are re-budgeted until the replacement is purchased or the improvement is made. As capital improvement projects are completed, the operations of these improvements are funded annually in the operating budget. The operating budget authorizes and provides the basis for control of operating expenditures for all services, including operating and maintaining improvements. Capital expenditures $10,000 and greater, are funded by the Park District’s Capital Projects Funds (26 and 31). Capital expenditures between $5,000 and $10,000 are funded by operational funds.
Chevy Chase Country Club’s capital expenditures are funded by its own internal fund dedicated to capital expenses as well as infrastructure expenses coming from the District’s Capital Projects Funds (26).
Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan Funding Sources
The Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan (CRIP) utilizes funding from property tax receipts, operating funds, grants, donations, partnerships, interest income, and transfers from the corporate and recreation funds; along with Non-Referendum General Obligation Park Bonds and Alternate Revenue Source Bonds. The following summarizes some of these funding sources for the Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan
Operating Funds represent fee and admission contributions from the operating revenues for capital projects specific to the fund making the contribution. The Special Populations Fund assists in making the existing facilities accessible as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Chevy Chase Country Club operates as an Enterprise Fund; therefore, it is largely responsible for its non-infrastructure capital expenses.
Grant funding from traditional State of Illinois sources has become an increasingly unreliable funding source for Park and Recreation capital projects. Programs such as the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Act (OSLAD), and the Park and Recreational Facility Construction (PARC) programs, both administered by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), have not been consistently funded by the State of Illinois. Therefore, due to this lack of consistency in funding, the District has had to look at funding options outside these grant programs. However, whenever these grants are available the District makes every effort to match grant opportunities with District projects.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) through its Illinois Energy Now program still provides rebates to public facilities that make large-scale equipment improvements to their electric and natural gas systems.
Donations are accepted by the District for a variety of projects. Additionally, cash contributions are received from developers, in lieu of land, for the development or improvement of parks in the area of development within the District.
Partnership opportunities exist for the District whereas it may cooperatively partner with another governmental agency, school district, library district, forest preserve district, or private company for the purpose of capital replacement and improvements.
Interest income represents interest income earned from unspent bond proceeds, as applicable.
Transfers are made annually from the Corporate and Recreation funds to the Capital Projects Fund (26). These transfers are based on the District’s fund balance policy, which in part states there to be a minimum fund balance for operational funds, with amounts over the minimum transferred to the CRIP for capital improvements. As of December 31, 2023, $28,978,465 has been transferred to the Capital Projects Fund (26) since 2008.
Non-Referendum General Obligation Park Bonds are bonds secured by the District’s pledge to levy a property tax sufficient to meet its debt service obligations but only up to a statutory limit. The legal debt limit for non-referendum bonds is .575% of the District’s taxable property value.
Alternate Revenue Source (ARS) Bonds are bonds payable from an identified revenue source that is expected to be sufficient to provide, in each year, not less than 1.25 times debt service on all outstanding alternate bonds payable from the revenue source and the alternate bonds proposed to be issued. In 2010 the District issued $8,800,000 in General Obligation (ARS) Bonds under the U.S. Government’s Build America Bonds program. In 2018 the District issued $3,375,000 in General Obligation (ARS) Bonds to help fund the CRC Renovation and Expansion Project. These bonds were refunded in 2020 resulting in an overall savings of $876,802. The District continues to have revenues sufficient to meet debt service obligations; therefore, no taxes levied for their payment have been extended.
Major Projects Included in the 2026-2030 Capital Replacement and Improvement Plan
Neighborhood Park Improvement Schedule ($720,000)
In accordance with the Park and Recreation Comprehensive Plan Report’s major initiative of park revitalization, and the results of the 2010 Community Survey, and reaffirmed by the 2015 and 2022 surveys, reflecting the importance of neighborhood parks, the Neighborhood Park Improvement Schedule was updated and formally adopted by the Board of Commissioners in April 2012. It has since been revised and updated in recent years to respond to opportunities and demand To further improve the parks, $720,000 is included in the 2026-2030 CRIP. The following parks are included in the Plan:
Neighborhood Park Improvement Schedule Malibu/Northside/Husky
Malibu Park, Northside Park, and Husky Park are all on the schedule for improvements over the next five (5) years. The funds associated with renovations at Malibu Park include site improvements, landscaping, and new playgrounds. The funds associated with Northside Park, and Husky Park will not be a full renovation, but rather, a renewal to keep the parks up-to-date. As is the case with all park improvements, these parks will be designed using the District’s People-Driven design process.
Aquatic Center Project ($34,000,000)
The outdoor Family Aquatic Center (FAC) opened in 1993 and consisted of a single water body of approximately 18,000 ft2, including a zero-depth edge, water playground, a whale slide and waterfalls, lap lanes, a splashdown area for two flume slides, and a deep well with two drop slides and one 1-meter diving board. Other amenities included a sand play area, sand volleyball courts, turf areas, an adult spa, and a concession area.
The FAC has always operated under the philosophy that user fees must cover all operational expenses and contribute to the capital fund to assist in funding future updates and expansion projects. In order to accomplish this, the District has been maintaining the facility and making improvements to keep current users coming back for multiple visits and to attract new guests to a revitalized, updated facility. In 2002, the Park District invested approximately $1,650,000 to provide two additional features at the Family Aquatic Center. Since that time, no amenities have been added.
It is becoming expensive to maintain the aging facility which was built 30 years ago. Given the advancement in aquatic parks and technology, and affirmed by the 2024 Family Aquatic Center Feasibility Study, the need for a new outdoor aquatic park is prudent
In 2025 the Board authorize the commencement of the Aquatic Center Project and the District began working with Confluence and Camosy Construction to star the design process for a new aquatic center. The 2026 – 2030 CRIP has $34,000,000 allocated for this project spread over 2026 and 2027.
Chevy Chase Country Club Cart Barns ($2,250,000)
The Capital Project funds will be used to construct a new cart barn on the south and north sides of Chevy Chase Country Club in 2028. These facilities will house the electric cart fleet and provide essential storage for operations, including rental clubs, outing supplies, and chairs and arches for the first tee ceremonies. The new locations, still to be exactly determined, will enhance operational efficiency by being designed to reduce outside staffing costs.
Equipment
Equipment Equipment
