Orland Park Eliminates Open Lands Fund, Civic Center Commissions

Orland Park IL

27 December, 2021

1:57 PM

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By Jon DePaolis, Richard Free Press: ORLAND PARK, Ill. — Two commissions have been disbanded by the Village of Orland Park Board of Trustees. The board members approved the elimination of the Open Lands Fund Commission and the Civic Center Advisory Committee in two 7-0 votes Monday, Dec. 20. "At the turn of the century … the voters approved a nearly $20 million fund to be used for the preservation of open lands and including acquisition, restoration, and maintenance of those open lands," Mayor Keith Pekau said. "It created a commission that was put in place during those years, and, frankly, they used almost every bit of those funds on acquisition. They pushed all of that restoration and maintenance, which was part of that $20 million, onto the Village. Unfortunately, we can't unwind that clock. "With the fund nearly depleted — and the Open Lands Commission left us with a few million dollars in projects we had to deal with, including the Doctor Marsh — there was no money in [the fund] to pay for it. Now, the Village was on the hook for paying for it. I elected, knowing that this was drawing to a close, to put some new commission members in place to help us transition open lands assets to the Village and to basically use the last of that fund." Pekau thanked the latest commission members and the former members, because "it did result in about 250 acres of open lands being preserved." "The Village remains committed to keeping those open lands in good condition," he said. Pekau also thanked the members of the Civic Center commission. "I want to thank all the members of the Civic Center board," Pekau said. "When I arrived here, the Civic Center had run an average annual deficit since its inception of $230,000 a year. That's how much we were subsidizing it. The board worked really hard to improve this, and they reduced it to about $30,000 per year by their last year. But now that those bonds are paid off, the Civic Center authority was dissolved and became an advisory board. Then, it became controlled by the Recreation Department, which already has an advisory board, so your work is done but not forgotten." Pekau said the people of Orland Park owed the volunteers on the commission "a great debt of gratitude." Richard Free Press is a one-stop destination for the news that most affects you, the southwest suburban resident. Be an informed citizen of the town you live in and love.