Orland Park Earmarks Over $40 Million To Update, Renovate 4 Parks

ORLAND PARK, IL — The Village Board approved a plan Monday to begin seeking proposals for engineering and construction firms willing to work on four of the village's largest parks. According to the call for proposals, the village is dedicating over $40 million to the repairs and upgrades.

For the first few years, repairs will focus on Centennial Park West and Schussler Park and plan to cost around $20 million for the pair.

Upgrades for Centennial Park West hope to include a new event stage with lawn seating and a possible terrace for VIP concertgoers.

Currently, Centennial Park West sits southwest of 153rd Street and West Avenue. Measuring at about 200-acres, Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau said the village is not planning on expanding the land but rather improving the area so it can one day be home to Orland Park festivals and larger events.

Schussler Park will need the most improvements, according to a representative from Wight & Co., a consulting firm hired by the village last year to map out the village's vision for the project.

At the 14609 Poplar Road location of Shussler Park, developers hope to create a turf football field complete with bleachers, a press box, parking and underground stormwater drainage. The field could also be used for soccer and residents won't lose the sledding hill on the east side of the park through the new plans, a spokesman told Patch. The sledding hill will move to the west side in addition to a new half-court basketball court.

All in all, Centennial Park West is estimated to cost developers around $10 million, with the permanent event stage being the biggest ticket item at $5 million. Renovations at Schussler will cost upwards of $9 million with the proposed turf field costing $2.4 million.

Centennial Park and John Humphrey Complex will be next on the docket with repairs and upgrades to come in a few years. Centennial Park may see an addition of three turf fields and batting cages to compliment the park's existing baseball fields, dog park and aquatic center.

However, room for the changes may come at the cost of removing the existing skateboard park and relocating the ice-skating rink to a residential area, Pekau said at the board meeting.

Centennial Park is set to cost the most of the four projects at $18.3 million.

The John Humphrey Complex is the final project accepting proposals. It currently sits the closest to Village Hall and the Civic Center. While the budget for the project is the lowest of the four at $3.7 million, a spokesperson said the complex will undergo many renovations in its multimillion dollar face-lift.

At John Humphrey, new lights will be installed in the baseball fields, a handicap accessible field will be added and a new playground. In recent years, the village retrofitted fields to improve water drainage and installed new dugouts.

Since Orland Elementary School District No. 135 shares access to the complex in order to play some school sports, officials told Patch they hope the district will pitch in for updated baseball and soccer fields.

Residents can find more information on the proposed changes here.