Committees review village park inventory and ADA gaps for Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan

Lydia Bernhoft, environmental planner with the Bay Lake Regional Planning Commission, led the Joint Beautification and Lake, Parks and Recreation committees through a facility inventory on March 10 as part of the village’s Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (CORP).

Bernhoft told committee members that Bertram Park faces ADA-accessibility challenges tied to inconvenient parking and that a driveway option west of the ballfield could improve access. She said the space between Bertram and Kircher parks is underused and recommended considering rebuilt tennis and basketball courts, a disc-golf course in the wooded area, and reusing playground equipment from the school to activate multiple zones.

At Bob McDermott Lakeview Park, Bernhoft identified a lack of playground equipment, parking-lot flooding and sand-area maintenance as near-term issues. Proposed amenities for the lakefront site included a bandstand, kayak launch, expanded swimming area, rentable boats, murals on concrete piers, an ADA path and winter uses such as an on-lake ice rink or a plowed path around the lake.

Kircher Park was flagged for court placement and facility repairs: Bernhoft noted tennis and basketball courts are too close to a sandbox, parking and bathroom updates are needed, and the concession stand requires repairs. Options discussed included removing tennis courts to expand the basketball court, adding batting cages or converting a surface for seasonal skating.

Other parcel-specific observations included: Burr Oak’s damp conditions but potential for passive seating and native plantings; Jacoby Memorial Park’s ‘‘dead space’’ that could be improved with public restrooms, a gazebo and creative seating; Memorial Park’s proximity to a railroad and power lines, which creates constraints but allows for trails, lighting and memorial elements; Jessie Bay’s limited-use green space with potential for a kayak-launch-adjacent parking lot or courts; and suggestions for Orth Drive, Ernst Drive and E Shore Drive that ranged from solar lighting and pollinator plantings to boardwalk viewing benches where lake access exists.

Bernhoft presented draft survey questions and invited additions from committee members, who suggested asking residents about desired amenities, interest in bike connectivity, playground quality and restroom availability. She said a draft of the survey would be available before the committees’ next meeting on April 28, and the committee set a public workshop for June 23 at 5:30 p.m. at the library to gather resident input.

Next steps noted by committee members include field visits to proposed sign locations (for the separate wayfinding discussion) and assembling a prioritized list of facility improvements and funding options for subsequent CORP drafts.