809
edits
Changes
→Sled Hill and Environmental Devastation
==Focus of Citizen Disgust With Park District==
==Focus of Citizen Disgust With Park District==
===Dog Park===
===Dog Park===
Cancellation of the dog park resulted in its own emergency meeting in Oak Park. The dog owners felt betrayed, and believed that Jan Arnold had unilaterally cancelled a binding agreement made after several years of negotiation between the previous park district executive director and a group organized to obtain a dog run in Oak Park. This was needed after the popular dog park at spacious, safe Lindberg Park was cancelled by that same previous executive director.
Cancellation of the dog park resulted in its own emergency meeting in Oak Park. The dog owners felt betrayed, and believed that Jan Arnold had unilaterally cancelled a binding agreement made after several years of negotiation between the previous park district executive director and a group organized to obtain a dog run in Oak Park. This was needed after the popular dog park at spacious, safe Lindberg (Greenfield) Park was cancelled by that same previous executive director.
===Sled Hill and Environmental Devastation===
===Sled Hill and Environmental Devastation===
[[File:SnowCoverGraphc.gif|thumb|right|550px|<small> The joy of snow activities lost because of Executive Director Jan Arnold, and the park board, led by Paul Aeschleman and Christine Graves, to destroy Ridgeland Common by removing the sled/toboggan hill, the dog park, and the mulch pile, and to replace natural grass with toxic artificial turf. You can’t even build a snowman there, thanks to their selfish, short-sighted policy. Do not forget their destruction of our once joyous park.</i></small>]]
The greatest disdain, however, was split between razing of the more than 50-year old sledding hill and the environmental consequences for Ridgeland Common.
The greatest disdain, however, was split between razing of the more than 50-year old sledding hill and the environmental consequences for Ridgeland Common.
A citizens group, Oak Parkers for Sanity in Our Parks, organized by [[Oak Park]], Illinois, environmentalist [[Les Golden]], scheduled a meeting with the Executive Director of the park district, Jan Arnold, and addressed their concerns. The citizen initiative led to articles in the [[Chicago Tribune]],<ref> http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-03-06/news/ct-met-oak-park-dog-park-20130307_1_dog-park-turf-field-larger-dog </ref><ref> http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-03-12/news/ct-tl-oak-park-dog-run-0314-20130312_1_dog-park-ridgeland-common-turf-field</ref> and numerous letters to the editor in the local Oak Park press. A rally was scheduled at Ridgeland Common and a resident began an online petition.<ref> http://www.change.org/petitions/the-oak-park-park-board-please-reconsider-your-plans-to-remove-the-sled-hill-at-ridgeland?utm_source=guides&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=petition_created</ref>
A citizens group, Oak Parkers for Sanity in Our Parks, organized by [[Oak Park]], Illinois, environmentalist [[Les Golden]], scheduled a meeting with the Executive Director of the park district, Jan Arnold, and addressed their concerns. The citizen initiative led to articles in the [[Chicago Tribune]],<ref> http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-03-06/news/ct-met-oak-park-dog-park-20130307_1_dog-park-turf-field-larger-dog </ref><ref> http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-03-12/news/ct-tl-oak-park-dog-run-0314-20130312_1_dog-park-ridgeland-common-turf-field</ref> and numerous letters to the editor in the local Oak Park press. A rally was scheduled at Ridgeland Common and a resident began an online petition.<ref> http://www.change.org/petitions/the-oak-park-park-board-please-reconsider-your-plans-to-remove-the-sled-hill-at-ridgeland?utm_source=guides&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=petition_created</ref>
Because of Golden’s environmental activism against destructive actions by the park district dating from the 2007 devastation of Field playground at the hands of past Park District head Gary Balling and the feckless, political patronage dump Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Golden used the name of Richard Kullman in scheduling the meeting. He did this for two reasons: 1. To ensure the protest stayed to the issue of Ridgeland Common and not be diverted by bureaucrats and the organized sports lobby to him, and 2. to begin afresh with the new executive director.
Because of Golden’s environmental activism against destructive actions by the park district dating from the 2007 devastation of Field playground at the hands of past Park District head Gary Balling and the feckless, political patronage dump Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Golden used the name of Richard Kullman in scheduling the meeting. He did this for two reasons: 1. To ensure the protest stayed to the issue of Ridgeland Common and not be diverted by bureaucrats and the organized sports lobby to him, and 2. to begin afresh with the new executive director.
The strategy proved to be in vain, however, when Diane Stanke, the public relations mouthpiece, and a holdover from the Gary Balling era, in an effort to discredit the passion of those wishing to keep the sled hill, dog park, and mulch pile, informed Arnold that Kullman was in fact Golden. Quickly, as Golden had feared, the issue began to focus on him rather than the thousands of children and dog owners who would now find their passive pleasure destroyed.
The strategy proved to be in vain, however, when Diane Stanke, the public relations mouthpiece, and a holdover from the Gary Balling era, in an effort to discredit the passion of those wishing to keep the sled hill, dog park, and mulch pile, informed Arnold that Kullman was in fact Golden. Quickly, as Golden had feared, the issue began to focus on him rather than the thousands of children and dog owners who would now find their passive pleasure destroyed.
Golden also shared the concerns of the group with the so-called “Green Committee,” which had been formed in 2008 in response to citizen uproar over the devastation of Field playground, and the destruction of most of its trees and all of the bushes surrounding the fieldhouse. The response of the Green Committee was to invite an artificial turf contractor to an emergency meeting with easily predicted results.
Golden also shared the concerns of the group with the so-called “Green Committee,” which had been formed in 2008 in response to citizen uproar over the devastation of Field playground, and the destruction of most of its trees and all of the bushes surrounding the fieldhouse. The response of the Green Committee was to invite an artificial turf contractor to an emergency meeting with easily predicted results.
==Desires of Other Users Largely Ignored==
==Desires of Other Users Largely Ignored==
===Other Winter Activities===
Sledding, bobsledding, and tobogganing are all lost to passive users. Tobogganing was routinely enjoyed with the top of a garbage can, a large piece of cardboard, or a plastic toboggan sled. Only a one-inch snow cover is needed to enjoy tobogganing. Indeed, you can’t even build a snowman on artificial turf. In past decades, numerous snowmen would appear at Ridgeland Common. Artificial turf, however, doesn’t bend to form a flat surface under the weight of snow. As a result, rolling a large snow ball encounters two difficulties: A large amount of friction with the synthetic turf and the actual abrasive effect of the plastic shoots against any snow mass attempting to be rolled along its surface. Even building a snowman is now an act of the past in Ridgeland Common!
===Many Users of the Hill: Fitness===
===Many Users of the Hill: Fitness===
Many people use the hill year-round, not just during organized sports season:
Many people use the hill year-round, not just during organized sports season:
Dog exercise<br>
Dog exercise<br>
Kids running down the slope with their kites to get added speed<br>
Kids running down the slope with their kites to get added speed<br>