Forest Preserve District proposes flat budget for 2016

FOREST PRESERVE DISTRICT OF COOK COUNTY November 17, 2015 Meeting

The FPDCC presented a flat budget for 2016.  Most of the public testimony at the budget hearing supported the proposed budget which preserved all programs. Many public speakers described their good working relationship with the district and how current programs have benefitted their constituents. Speakers included representatives from Green Corps Chicago, University of Illinois Extension, FPDCC's Conservation Corps, Thatcher Woods Savanna Restoration Project, Growing Solutions (a program for developmentally challenged students from Al Raby High School that grows vegetables for Brookfield Zoo animals); Mujeres Latinas en Accion, El Valor, Chicago Botanic Garden, and Chicago Zoological Society (Brookfield Zoo). Several speakers gave moving testimonials on how FPDCC's programs have personally impacted them, giving them opportunities and, for some, a chance to turn their lives around.  All speakers supported expansion of current programs.

Representatives of various Cook County equestrian groups objected to having to pay a fee to use the trails, which were the precursors of today's bike/walking trails and paths.  Many equestrians are members of the Trail Watch volunteer program that informs FPDCC when trees have fallen across trails or block stream flow, or there are other issues needing attention. Most of the surrounding counties do not assess a trail users fee. The collected annual fees ($34 for residents/$49 for non-residents; daily fee is $4) are supposed to be used for "equestrian amenities".  However, of the $80,000 in fees collected the past two years, the only identifiable amenity the four public speakers have seen is seven hitching posts.  They asked to see the equestrian amenities plans.

Forest Preserve Foundation President Shelley Davis highlighted their accomplishments as described in their 2015 annual report , and strategic plan. As an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, the foundation encourages and administers private gifts to further the district's mission and goals. Aligned with the Next Century Conservation Plan and the Centennial Campaign Plan, the foundation focuses on building a base of partners and supporters.  Highlights included raising $168,000 at the Conservation Cup Golf Tournament, which will allow for expansion of the FPDCC's Conservation Corps program.  Due to pension payment uncertainties, the financial support from the foundation will become increasingly important.

More critical of the proposed budget was Lawrence Msall, president of the Civic Federation, which submitted 57 pages of comments on the budget (unclear as to whether those comments also addressed the Cook County Board's budget.) Msall said FPDCC needs a contingency plan for funding pension obligations if pension reforms don't happen. He called for separation of the FPDCC from the Cook County Board, and stated that the current governance & budget aren't sufficiently transparent.

Also concerned about the impact of pension payments on future programs was Benjamin Cox, Exec. Dir. of Friends of the Forest Preserve.  Based on his review of page 17 of the budget, pension obligations will not strain the budget in 2016, but the picture will be different in 2017. He expressed concern that the Resource Management funds which are critical to the district's core mission, will be sacrificed to the pensions.

Commissioner Larry Suffredin picked up on this theme with his similar concern, and General Superintendent Arnold Randall agreed that pension payments are the elephant in the room for the 2017 budget.

Commissioners will vote on the budget at the December 15, 2015 meeting.

In other matters. . .

• Commissioner Larry Suffredin reported on his annual survey of picnic permit users.  One hundred fifty-one (151) respondents out of 400 identified the need for more recycling bins, cleaner restroom facilities, and suggested adding power to picnic shelters.  Signage regarding water pump usage is also necessary. 
• The new campgrounds will be open during winter for cross-country skiing.

Agenda items included the following. . .

• The proposed collective bargaining agreement, salary schedule, wage adjustments and health care plan were referred to the Labor Committee (#15-0584); a leave of absence policy for organ donors was also proposed (Item #15-0618).
• An audit of evaluating the effectiveness of internal controls over procurement card usage was referred to the Audit Committee (#15-0596).
• Proposed contracts include $200,000 for a second large truck capable of removing & transporting large logs (#15-0602); an increase in rock salt & de-icing materials (total contract amount will be $384,000; the City of Chicago and FPDCC bid jointly with the supplier; #15-0603)
• Proposed $1.12 million contract for restoration of 366 acres of the Cranberry Slough Nature Preserve (Palos area).  This site is the #1 priority for restoration as identified in the 2014 Next Century Conservation Plan. (#15-0607); proposed agreement with Openlands and Army Corps of Engineers to develop a work plan to restore valuable remnant wetland communities and the surrounding watershed at Deer Grove West (#15-0620).  The 500 acre Deer Grove West was  FPDCC's first acquisition when it was established 100 years ago.  Costs of this project will be funded via the O'Hare Modernization Mitigation Account designed to address off-site wetland impacts from the O'Hare expansion. Deer Grove West is in the top five priorities for restoration according to the Natural & Cultural Resources Master Plan.
• Proposed partnership with The Nature Conservancy to collaborate on wildfire management activities (Item #15-0621).
• Proposed 10 year license to Waste Management of Illinois, Inc. to install & operate an additional groundwater monitoring well in Beaubien Woods, across the Bishop Ford Highway, from the CID Landfill. License fees exceed $12,000 this year. (#15-0613)
• Proposed contract ($675,000) with Constellation Energy Services to supply district wide electricity (#15-0615)

Submitted by Sheri Latash

Municipal Dispute Causes Controversy at October Forest Preserve District Board Meeting

September and October 2015 Forest Preserve District of Cook County Board Meetings

September 2015

 

--Due to the budget impasse in Springfield, $4.5 million in grants from the State have been suspended.  These grants include funding for dam removal to improve stormwater management & habitat restoration; strategic land acquisitions; invasive species training and control; projects at Brookfield Zoo and the Chicago Botanic Garden, among other things. Though awarded, these grants are on indefinite freeze. According to the FPDCC, the suspension "jeopardizes the State's ability to attract future federal funding and threatens to waste investments already made..." In response to the suspension, the commissioners  approved a resolution calling for the release of frozen grant funds, to be sent to Governor Rauner with copies to IDNR and IEPA. (#15-0531)

--Item #15-0467 addressed a report about expansion of the Conservation Corps, a strategy for training out-of-school youth (ages 18-24), as well as those involved with the justice system, which is a priority of the Next Century Conservation Plan. 

--The FPDCC receives 1-2 calls a week from donors wanting to honor or memorialize someone with a tree or bench in the preserves. The Forest Preserve Foundation will now manage the tree & bench donation program. (#15-0481)

--Through Chicago Wilderness, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has given FPDCC a $20,000 grant (with a $20,000 match) to make FPDCC the premiere birding destination, to promote birding to diverse audiences, and to provide birding resources to new & experienced birders. (#15-0487)

  

October 2015

FPDCC access to Lake Michigan water at its largest police facility was the issue that triggered extensive and heated public testimony as well as much commissioner discussion--beginning with the September Board meeting and continuing for more than three hours at the October Board meeting.  It is unlikely that FPDCC Superintendent Arnold Randall anticipated such a vigorous response to what  appeared to be a straightforward request. That is, the FPDCC asked the Village of Palos Park to provide Lake Michigan water to its police substation in unincorporated Lemont Township because the shallow well that has been providing water is failing. Additionally, at a future date, Palos Park could be asked to supply water and sewer services to the nearby FPDCC campgrounds.

In reality, the testimony during discussion of  Real Estate Item 15-0198 had little to do with supplying water through an intergovernmental agreement, as you will read below.

Palos Park's response to FPDCC was that they could only provide water & sewer services to properties within its corporate boundaries.  Thus, FPDCC requested annexation to Palos Park. (It's worth noting that 30% of the FPDCC's holdings lay within the corporate boundaries of Palos Park.  Annexation does not involve transfer of land nor any rights to the land by Palos Park.) 

The controversy that ensued between Palos Park and Lemont's village government & many Lemont residents began with the fact that the 152 acre tract on which FPDCC police facility is located is contiguous to the village of Lemont but not contiguous with Palos Park.  Large tracts of FPDCC land separate Palos Park's corporate boundaries from the 152 acres proposed for annexation (the southeast corner of Bell & McCarthy Rds.). 

Given this physical separation, how could annexation to Palos Park occur?  A recent change in state law now allows for such annexations by  "jumping over" the forest preserves, in essence using them as a bridge.

Why should the Village of Lemont (which is on well water) care that Palos Park has been asked to supply Lake Michigan water to the FPDCC police substation? Lemont's real concern is not about providing water to this 152 acres, but that annexation of this parcel by Palos Park would give Palos the needed link to annex more than 1,400 acres in unincorporated Lemont Township. Lemont is concerned about the density of future development and its impact on Lemont schools, library, & park district; and nearby homeowners fear smaller lot sizes will affect their quality of life and property values.  However, the three major owners of the 1,400 acres in question (Cog Hill Country Club, Gleneagles Country Club, and Ludwig Farms) dispute the claims and characterization of their future development intentions by Lemont village government and its citizens; and those three owners prefer annexation by Palos Park rather than Lemont. 

As became abundantly clear during the 3+ hours of testimony in which Palos Park, the FPDCC, and the major landowners were demonized by some of the 26 public speakers, neither village made any effort to talk with the other about the proposed annexation--much to the chagrin of the FPDCC commissioners. In the end, the FPDCC approved the annexation.  Commissioners Richard Boykin and Larry Suffredin dissented, with Suffredin commenting that their approval improperly injected the FPDCC in the middle of regional land use planning.

The possible future development of this 1,400 acres is a saga going back more than 10 years. A more detailed account was reported in the Chicago Tribune.  

 

Other October agenda items of note. . .

--Resting points for users of the North Branch trail will be enhanced by Friends of the Forest Preserve's donation of up to $42,000 for the purchase and installation of up to 21 benches and 14 bicycle racks at specified locations. (#15-0538)

--The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has given a $50,000 grant for restoration of 22 acres of migratory bird habitat in LaBagh Woods on Chicago's northwest side. The project is a partnership with the Chicago Park District, Friends of the Chicago River, Lincoln Park Zoo's Urban Wildlife Institute, Chicago Audubon Society, Chicago Ornithological Society, the Bird Conservation Network, and Greencorps. (#15-0545)

--USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) has extended through September 2017 its Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant to improve habitat for marshland birds at Eggers Woods in Chicago.  The $56,000 grant has a $28,000 match from FPDCC. (#15-0550)

--Also through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, USDA's NRCS is extending its grant (which requires $42,000 in matching funds) for work at Turnbull Woods, specifically to improve amphibian habitat and suitability for migratory bird stopovers. (#15-0553) 

--A  two-year U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grant of ~$123,000 (with a $43,000 match by FPDCC) will permit 35 acre habitat restoration of the king rail, an Illinois endangered bird species, at Barrington's Crabtree Nature Center.  The grant also involves the banding & monitoring of birds (#15-0568).

Submitted by Sheri Latash

Forest Preserve District of Cook County Highlights from the 4th Quarter 2014 Board Meetings

[This report reinstates LWVCC coverage of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County (FPDCC) Board of Commissioners meetings. It provides an excellent summary of current issues at the District and recent actions of the Board to get us up to speed.]

The FPDCC will be celebrating its 100th birthday in 2015.  Today, approximately 11% of the county footprint (about 69,000 acres), is in forest preserve. A description of the 2014 accomplishments of FPDCC can be found at the October 8, 2014 special board meeting introducing the proposed 2015 budget.

The financial status of FPDCC is sound.  The corporate fund analysis discussed at the December 2014 meeting (reflecting the financial picture as of October 31) showed year-to-date revenue of $50.8 million and year-to-date expenditures at $41.9 million.  Revenues are $5.6 million ahead of last year.

The district is in year 3 of the 5-year capital improvement plan.  Examples of improvements include the construction of additional trails, trail connections, and campgrounds, and infrastructure improvements including those related to life-safety and accessibility.  Yet more tasks remain than the resources to pay for them.  

The district is still actively purchasing property where and when it makes sense to do so. Possible future acquisitions could include farmland or brownfields.  For example, at the December board meeting, members approved acquisition of lands near Lake Calumet that will connect to the Illinois Department of Natural Resource managed areas. (See December meeting notes.)  The district is also partnering with other units of government, e.g. the City of Chicago, on a rails to trails project for Bunker Hill/North Branch Division in Niles.

The FPDCC's ability to fulfill its mission is enhanced by two organizations: the Forest Preserve Foundation and the FPDCC Conservation and Policy Council. The Forest Preserve Foundation, an independent 501(c)(3) charitable foundation created in October 2012, has become an important partner for FPDCC management by raising private "funds and in-kind resources to support initiatives in the forest preserves that are new, innovative and not able to be supported through current tax revenues." More than $160,000 in grants have been made to train more than 250 students through its citizen scientist program and conservation corps programs.  For more information on these programs see  http://fpdcc.com/volunteer-spotlight-feb/.

Appointed members to the newly created (November 2014) Conservation and Policy Council advise FPDCC Commissioners, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and FPDCC General Superintendent Arnold Randall on implementation of the Next Century Conservation Plan (the guiding document for the future forest preserve district), annual budget recommendations, conservation policies & practices, and long-term strategic issues. The 10-person council is comprised of individuals whose background, experience, and volunteer activities are in conservation and habitat restoration, outdoor recreation, health & wellness, sustainable design & energy management, landscape architecture, education, environmental law, among other specialties.

The following actions, addressed by the commissioners during the 4th quarter, are particularly relevant to League positions and interests of its members:

October 7, 2014 Meeting

#14-0473/14-0472:  Resolution approving use of funds for supervision and construction funds of the 2.96 mile Southern Extension of the North Branch Bicycle Trail (from Devon & Caldwell to Foster & Kostner). This cost-sharing project (with Federal funds awarded through IDOT, to support efforts that contribute to air quality improvement and provide congestion relief), obligates FPDCC to cover 20% of the cost.

#14-0417:  The Real Estate Committee recommended approval of a license request by Waste Management of Illinois to locate, operate, and maintain two groundwater monitoring wells in Beaubien Woods Forest Preserve near the CID landfill and recycling facility on Lake Calumet.

#14-0400:  Requires a special event permit to hold rallies, pickets, protests, speeches, and demonstrations of 25 or more people in the forest preserves

#14-0475:  Disbursement of $200,000 for the Chicago Conservation Leadership Corps summer 2014 internship program

#14-0405:  Consistent with the FPDCC Next Century Conservation Plan to open up the forest preserve to non-traditional activities that will appeal to more people, a contract was awarded to Go Ape for design and construction of an aerial adventure and zipline course.  The company will pay FPDCC a $20,000 annual fee plus a tiered percentage of the gross revenue generated.  This project was opposed by the non-profit Friends of the Forest Preserves.  Commissioner Suffredin was the sole dissenting vote as he did not see this use as one that is consistent with the FPDCC mission.

#14-0484:  Contract with Chicago public television station WYCC to create a one-hour documentary focusing on the upcoming FPDCC centennial and the Next Century Conservation Plan.  Content will also be used in interactive kiosks.     

Contracts were awarded for invasive species removal at Swallow Cliffs in the Palos Preserve (#14-0464), and at various locations for: replacement tree planting due to the Emerald Ash Borer (#14-0465);  tree removal/topping/pruning (#14-0466, 14-0467);  habitat restoration & education through a Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant (14-0482, 14-0483)

November 18, 2014 Meeting

#14-0391:  The Rules committee recommended full Board approval of an amendment to Title 1, Chapter 5, Section 1-5-2 of the FPDCC Code of Ordinances to require any proposed new ordinance or proposed amendment to existing ordinances be referred to a committee or subcommittee (and only one committee or subcommittee) upon introduction to the Board.  Upon referral, the committee shall hold a hearing after which the item shall be reported to the Board which may vote for immediate consideration of the item by a majority vote.

#14-0170:  Commissioner Suffredin introduced a proposed resolution opposing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposed use of the Fullerton Woods and Harry Semrow Golf Driving Range for stormwater management.  A 2013 report by the U.S. Corps of Engineers created a comprehensive plan for addressing flooding and stormwater along the Des Plaines River.  Recommended remediation measures included creation of a reservoir within the Aptakisic Creek watershed (Lake County) near the Village of Buffalo Grove.  The Village of Buffalo Grove passed a resolution opposing the siting of the reservoir and the Corps of Engineers modified their report to, instead, propose creation of the two FPDCC reservoirs.  However, the Corps did not present their proposal to the FPDCC Board nor has the Board acted upon the proposal, which is contrary to the mission and land use policies of FPDCC.  Furthermore, the resolution calls for the Real Estate Committee to convene a public hearing to discuss the proposed reservoirs.

#14-0419:  Authorizes the Village of Niles to locate, operate, and maintain a 72-inch storm sewer and outfall structure to the North Branch of the Chicago River.  This storm sewer will replace a 60" combined sewer that currently discharges to the North Branch in times of flooding.

#14-0537:  Disbursement of $150,666.77 to the University of Illinois' Prairie Research Institute for developing the Natural and Cultural Resources Master Plan to be produced as part of the FPDCC centennial celebration.

#14-0510:  $50,000 contract to Friends of the Forest Preserves to establish the Forest Preserve Leadership Corps which will provide advanced conservation and leadership skill training for young adults (ages 18-20) who have graduate from the Chicago Conservation Leadership Corps. This next level of training will provide year-round opportunities in prescribed fire, herbicide application, stewardship, chainsaw operation and community engagement experiences.

#14-0513:  A $43,000 grant award through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) to manage invasive species at Wentworth Woods in Calumet City.

#14-0556:  Additional funding for architectural and engineering design & construction services at the Oak Forest Heritage Preserve.  Superintendent Randall gave a complete timeline and report on the historic and current creation of trails & trail connections at this site where the recent discovery of human remains was the subject of incorrect media reporting.

December 16, 2014 Meeting

#14-1016:  Acquisition of 1.87 acres near the Powderhorn Prairie Preserve (4000 W. 134th St., Chicago).

#14-1020:  Acquisition of 1.696 acres near Powderhorn Prairie Preserve (12201-12257 South Avenue K, Chicago)

#14-1022/#14-1023:  Creation of a forest preserve near Powderhorn Lake and Nature Preserve.

#14-1027:  Amendment of intergovernmental agreement with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources authorizing $1.6 million to the FPDCC for tasks related to the removal of the Chick Evans Golf Course and Winnetka Road dams on the North Branch, and the Dempster Dam on the Des Plaines River.  Dam removal has been in the works for 12 (!) years, and will improve recreational use of these waterways.

Submitted by Sheri Latash