Lake View Nature Center to Close

The Oakbrook Terrace Park District notified its staff today of the impending close of its Lake View Nature Center, located at 17W063 Hodges Road in Oakbrook Terrace, on Friday June 3.

In addition, it will be canceling its community events for the remainder of the year due to restrictions in the 2016-17 budget.

“It was a difficult decision to close a facility and eliminate the jobs of valued Park District employees," said Cathy Fallon, the agency’s executive director. "The decision was made after an exhaustive review of our entire organization, and with the greatest reluctance. With the Park District revenue sources under pressure, we unfortunately need to take these actions in order to be responsible with the revenue we receive. This decision will allow us to operate within a balanced budget and keep Oakbrook Terrace Park District on a responsible financial path for this fiscal year.”

The agency’s programming has been restructured, and Nature Programming has thus been absorbed into Recreation in an effort to keep the Park District financially viable.

Day-to-day operations of the Lake View Nature Center will cease as of June 3, which affects daily walk-in traffic to the facility. The Oakbrook Terrace Park District intends to maintain nature based recreation and programming that meets the needs of their residents moving forward.

In addition to closing the Lake View Nature Center, the Oakbrook Terrace Park District is suspending the planning of community events for the remainder of the year, after Kids Fit in Nature on May 14, which will still go on as planned.

The agency remains hopeful that these moves will be temporary, and the 2017/2018 Budget will not continue to be adversely affected by a shortfall. They are optimistic an increase in community support through sponsorships and advertising revenue will help bridge the gap.

By OBTPD (Open Post). This story originally appeared on the Glen Ellyn Patch. Photo by Kathleen B. on Yelp.