'Deeply Concerned': Park Upgrades In La Grange Questioned

LA GRANGE, IL – The park district in La Grange plans big improvements to Denning Park, but a neighboring couple fears the effects on drainage.

The planned features include the park district's first nine-hole disc golf course, a new soccer field, enhanced pathways, new shade trees, expanded garden plots, a resurfaced basketball court and a new restroom building.

Just north of the park, David and Cathy Whelan live in the 1300 block of Mason Drive. In an email to Patch last week, they said they supported park upgrades.

"But we’re deeply concerned about how the new disc golf course has been handled — particularly the lack of community input and the potential impact on both public use and private property," they said.

When plans were introduced earlier this year, they said the park district informed the public that hole locations weren't finalized and would be discussed at a later park board meeting.

But they said the district did not mention the project in any board agendas and that neighbors were never invited to provide feedback.

"Late last month, orange stakes and paint suddenly appeared throughout the park," the couple said. "Within days, bulldozers began clearing bushes and installing concrete tee pads – including one just 15 feet from a private drainage system we built to manage major runoff. The Park District’s public plans (dated July 2024) don’t reflect these changes."

The Whelans also said the second tee is placed directly in front of a storm runoff path that regularly floods. The third hole crosses soccer fields that children use daily, they said.

However, Jenny Bechtold, executive director of the Park District of La Grange, listed steps that she said her agency was taking to alleviate drainage issues.

The district is installing a native prairie buffer along the north property line to strengthen natural drainage, improve soil stability and create a more sustainable landscape.

She noted the district is tearing down the building that housed the now-defunct LeaderShop group, which disbanded after a controversy. That, she said, would reduce the amount of hard surface that makes drainage harder.

Based on information from the village of La Grange, a low-lying, marshy area known as a swale, which is behind homes on the park's north side, is functioning as designed, temporarily holding water during storms until the drainage system has capacity, Bechtold said.

"The specific catch basin/storm sewer that residents (have) referenced is not located on Park District property," Bechtold said. "We care about being good stewards of our parks and are committed to thoughtful planning to ensure responsible stormwater management for our community."