Title
REQUEST TO INITIATE 45-DAY NOTICE PERIOD TO NAME PARK NO. 596 IN BRIGHTON PARK AS COMMISSIONERS PARK
BODY
To the Honorable Board of Commissioners of the Chicago Park District
I. Recommendation
It is recommended that an order be entered authorizing the General Superintendent or his designee to initiate a 45-day notice period to solicit public input to name Park No. 596 as Commissioners Park.
Proposed Park or feature: Park No. 596
Location: 4830 S. Western Ave.
Community Area: Brighton Park
Ward: 15
Proposed Name: Commissioners Park
II. Explanation
Park No. 596
The Chicago Park District assigns an official park number to every property. Located in the Brighton Park Community, Park 596 is a newer park in a former industrial lot that totals 17 acres and includes a 58,100-square-foot two-story facility that serves as both the Chicago Park District headquarters and a fieldhouse equipped with state-of-the-art amenities and energy efficiencies.
The Chicago Park District is governed by a board of seven non-salaried Commissioners who are appointed by the Mayor of the City of Chicago with the approval of the Chicago City Council. Under the Chicago Park District Code, the Commissioners have a fiduciary duty to act, vote on all matters, and govern the Park District in the best interest of the Park District.
In honor of all of the Commissioners who previously served or are currently serving on the Chicago Park District Board, the current Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners proposes naming Park 596 “Commissioners Park” to reflect the commitment and time donated by these public servants.
As a result, it is proposed that the Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners initiate the 45-day notice period to solicit public input to name Park No. 596 as Commissioners Park.
Proposed Name: Commissioners Park
Park 596 is a 17-acre property in the Brighton Park Community Area of Chicago. The property was formerly an industrial lot.
After selling its current administrative offices to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in 2014, the Park District searched for a new administrative headquarters site. Twenty locations throughout the City were considered, and the site at 48th and Western was selected due to the City’s prioritization for neighborhood investment, the need for additional open space acreage in the community, the site’s direct access to public transportation, and the large size and neighborhood context of the available property.
The Park District acquired the site in 2018, broke ground in July 2021, and it opened to the public and Park District staff in June 2023.
The site consists of multiple parcels grouped into one, that previously housed a number of factories and processing facilities. These included Chicago Tube & Iron, Wilson Steel & Iron, and the former “World’s Famous Chocolate” facility. As these parcels housed industrial uses, environmental remediation was necessary to render the entire site fit for public park use. Remediation efforts began in 2019 and were completed a year later.
III. Park Naming Procedures
Chapter VII, Section E of the Code of the Chicago Park District, (the Naming Ordinance), which governs the naming and renaming of parks and park features, states that if a proposed name honors a person, the (i) person shall have been deceased for a least one (1) year prior to consideration; and (ii) the person shall have demonstrated a continued commitment and made an extraordinary contribution to civic betterment, locally, nationally or internationally.
Pursuant to the Naming Ordinance, this request to rename and name parks have been forwarded to the Secretary of the Chicago Park District, who shall (i ) file a copy of this request with the Board of Commissioners (or appropriate Committee); and (ii) initiate a notice period of at least 45 days to provide notice and solicit public input. Such notice shall be posted at the respective subject park field house (or for any park without a field house, at the nearest field house) and it shall be sent to advisory councils located within a one (1) mile radius of the subject park. At the conclusion of the notice period, the General Superintendent or his designee may in his discretion recommend to the Board that it approve the requested renames and names.