Palos Heights voters will decide whether to approve plans for a $6.3 million recreation center expansion and renovation.
The updated recreation center at 6601 W. 127th St. would include a new gymnasium, three-lane indoor walking and jogging track and a wellness center with fitness equipment.
The existing space would be turned into a large multipurpose room, teen center, pre-school area and community rooms that would provide more space for groups that outgrew the current facility, along with more parking spaces and expanded program offerings, said Palos Heights Director of Parks and Recreation Michael Leonard.
The Palos Heights City Council voted unanimously in July to put a question on the Nov. 4 ballot asking voters whether the city should borrow $6.3 million to renovate and expand the recreation center.
It’s Palos Heights’ second attempt to update the recreation center, after 72 percent of voters rejected a referendum proposing a new $16.6 million facility in 2004.
“A community of 13,000 people couldn’t afford a $16 million facility, so the city had to step back and really focus on needs and propose a facility that addressed needs, not wants,” Leonard said.
Leonard said borrowing the $6.3 million would add about $30 per year per $100,000 of a home’s actual market value to the owner’s property tax bill. The general obligation bonds would be repaid over 20 years.
Much of the opposition has focused on the price tag and effect on residents’ property taxes.
Ald. Dolores Kramarski voted for putting the referendum on the ballot but said she plans to vote no.
“We’re a small community, and I don’t think we can give everybody everything,” Kramarski said. “Voters will vote their conscience, and what they can afford.”
But supporters of the expanded recreation center say the renovation would provide much-needed upgrades to a building that’s changed little since it opened as a school during the 1950s.
“I don’t want to pay higher taxes, but to be honest, we hardly have a rec center at the moment. In my mind, having those types of amenities will also have a positive impact on property values,” said Michael Gilhooly, calling it an “investment in the community.”
Gilhooly is the chairman of Citizens for Remodeled Recreation Center, a political action committee campaigning for a “yes” vote. He said the committee has raised more than $7,000, distributed more than 500 yard signs and has volunteers going door-to-door and preparing a second mailing that will be sent to registered voters before the election.
A survey of nearly 4,000 Palos Heights households this summer found that nearly 60 percent of respondents would definitely or probably vote in favor of the referendum proposal, while nearly 40 percent would definitely or probably vote no.
The survey was not scientific but gives “a little bit of a guide” to how voters are feeling, Leonard said.
While the track and community room space would be free for Palos Heights residents, there would likely be a fee of about $25 a month to use the fitness center and fees for individual programs, Leonard said. Non-residents would pay more to use the center, he added.
He said the goal would be for the facility to pay for itself, something the city has been able to do with its pool, which hasn’t lost money since its renovation in 2009, according to Leonard. If the referendum proposal is approved, one of the next steps for the city would be developing a business plan and deciding how to recover costs, something that’s “up to the city council,” Leonard said.
If voters reject the plan, the city’s Recreation Department will continue offering services, Leonard said. “But we could provide a higher level of service with the improved recreation center.”
