Elmhurst Bandshell Dispute To Cool Off For Time Being

ELMHURST, IL – The Elmhurst park board is putting to rest, for the time being, the summer-long dispute over where to build a bandshell at Wilder Park.

On Monday, members agreed to spend up to $12,000 for more design work for the proposed bandshell at Wilder Park.

The board's vote was 6-1, with the board's president, Kevin Graf, the lone dissenter. Patch left an emailed message for comment with Graf on Wednesday afternoon.

With its vote, the board is asking its consultants to draft plans for three sites at Wilder – the lawn east of the mansion, the north rim of the old ice rink and the rink's south rim.

In late May, board members discussed the location, with four, including Graf, favoring the east lawn and three others opposing it. That set off a local movement against the east lawn site, with residents saying the bandshell would interrupt the sight lines to the iconic mansion.

A resident group's survey showed most residents opposed the mansion site. And many comments for the park board's own survey indicated the unpopularity of the mansion location, although the survey asked no specific site question.

Jim Schuetz, a resident against the mansion site, questioned Graf's vote.

"Kevin's ongoing resistance to simply ask the community where it prefers the bandshell to be placed is, frankly, inexplicable," Schuetz said in an email to Patch. "As an elected official and the Park Board President, we expect him to lead with transparency, not defiance. And above all, we expect him to listen."

Backers of the mansion site say it's where bands used to play, proving its good acoustics.

They also note the park district pointed to this location in its materials before November's referendum. In the election, voters approved $90 million for local park improvements, including the bandshell.