job-based brands were established: “Work Here, Play Here” and “Plan Your Summer Adventure.” The Work Here, Play Here theme addressed the full-time, careers-based aspect and the Plan Your Summer Adventure branding was geared toward teens and young adults, focusing on part-time summer jobs. New in 2023, staff added the “Careers Grow Here” brand to highlight the varied careers available within the field of parks and recreation. These brands were supported by an extensive marketing and communications plan, and the District will continue to promote and grow these initiatives in 2024. Maintaining high standards of excellence in our parks has required implementing a continued innovative approach by our park maintenance and trades divisions to help address the challenges of staff vacancies, higher costs of commodities and equipment, and more frequent use of the parks. To manage the workload with fewer staff members, the Parks Department is using contractors to help with mulching, weeding, repairs, and other tasks previously assigned to part-time, seasonal staff. Additionally, as seasonal positions have gone unfilled, tasks and responsibilities have been built into long-term positions, which provides more stability within the department. Another strategy undertaken by the Parks Department to streamline work is to simplify some of the landscape beds by decreasing their size and planting more perennials and native plants that require less maintenance, are drought-resistant, and can grow in mass, thereby out-competing weeds. The Parks Department has also piloted and adapted new technology to increase efficiency including the implementation of autonomous mowers, automated irrigation systems, and enhanced smart phone use to increase the ability to work more effectively while out in the field.
Partnerships have been integral to the Park District’s success in meeting the needs of the community since its inception, from shared use of school gyms to state grants and corporate sponsorships. Some of the partnership agreements created or updated in 2023 include an updated agreement with the City of Naperville for the Riverwalk and Millennium Carillon, a new agreement with DuPage County for stormwater infrastructure projects, an updated agreement with KidsMatter for programs, and a partnership with Naperville Little League Baseball for the addition of synthetic turf infields. By sharing costs, space, ideas and more, the Park District and its partners are better able to serve the community with available resources. The Naperville Park District is committed to taking time to plan for the future, creating and updating Districtwide documents such as the Strategic Plan and Master Plan and also creating site-specific or program-specific plans. Whatever the scope of the plan, the District seeks community input through surveys, meetings, and other communication. In 2023, the District hosted a public open house and invited resident input regarding the Master Plan update. The updated Master Plan was approved by the Board of Commissioners in August and will help guide the District in managing land and prioritizing resources in the next 5-10 years. Even with the District’s careful planning, reliance on partnerships and use of technology and innovation, rising costs present challenges to the Park District’s 2024 budget. For example, significantly higher construction costs are requiring the District to postpone some capital projects. The District also must balance the need to keep recreation program fees affordable with the need to cover rising costs of program materials and hiring contractors and qualified, creative staff to oversee programs.
As we begin 2024, the board and staff look forward to additional planning focused on indoor recreation space. An indoor recreation space needs assessment will be developed, and the District once again will be seeking community input on the types of recreation-focused spaces that are needed. The District also will continue to review other plans, such as the Strategic Plan, so that board and staff can remain flexible and strategic, given the ever-changing economic environment, trends, demographics, and new interests that may emerge in the community.
2024 BUDGET 4
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