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“Citizen Park Reports”, my form of CPR for the Crystal Lake Park District Board. At the August board meeting, I presented them with a petition containing 109 signatures, requesting that the gravel trails in the Lippold Park wetlands be properly surfaced. A request I’ve personally made for several years. My wife spoke next and introduced the park board to our disabled adult daughter. She hasn’t been able to walk in the park for several years due to the condition of the trails. After the board meeting, we were ignored. No response at all. No e-mails and no phone calls. So, we called the Northwest Herald and told them our story. The trails in the wetland portion of Lippold Park have been ignored for years. The other trails near the sports facilities are well maintained. Unmaintained trails present hazards for normal walkers. The elderly and handicapped people can’t use the trails at all. In an article printed in the Northwest Herald on Wednesday, Aug. 31, we read that the Executive Director claimed the problems were “aesthetic.” He said, “Paving trails is expensive.” The gravel trails in the sports portions of Lippold Park are impeccably maintained. Nature doesn’t generate revenue, so it gets ignored. Why does the park district have money to “maintain” all their other trails? A park district as large as Crystal Lake should have the budget and equipment to maintain all our parks adequately. Thankfully, the Northwest Herald listened and helped us. If they hadn’t printed the article, we would still be waiting for an answer. There are other neglected parks in the Crystal Lake Park District; we’ve seen and heard about them. I plan to give the park board a second report on “Lost Lippold.” I’ll be at every monthly meeting until things improve.
Citizens are permitted only three minutes each at the beginning of Crystal Lake Park Board meetings. It’s about how your tax dollars are being used or wasted. Do you have a “Citizen Park Report” for the Crystal Lake Park Board? If you do, join us. The next board meeting begins at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8. I hope to see you soon.
Bob Miller
Crystal Lake