Inside Glencoe Park District’s $14.7 million bond referendum

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Glencoe voters have a big-ticket, eight-digit decision to make when filling out their ballots this election cycle.

They will face the question of whether Glencoe should issue a 25-year municipal bond package of $14.7 million to fund beachfront and other park improvements. 

The park district’s website asserts that the bond would not increase current tax rates; it would instead replace a $13.8 million bond from 2005 that paid for renovations to the Takiff Center and will expire by the end of 2025.

If the referendum does not pass, according to the park district’s website, Glencoe’s tax rate would decrease by approximately $261 annually for homes with a fair market value of $1 million.

“It really supports our property values to have well-maintained parks and a well-maintained beach,” Carol Spain, Glencoe Park District President, told The Record. “I think (residents are) getting more than $261 worth of value per year in maintaining the desirability of the community and the property values of their homes as well as benefiting from the services the park district offers.”

On July 18, Glencoe Park District’s board voted unanimously to take the query to the ballots. 

Within their list, the park district states that the referendum, if passed, would aim to improve Glencoe’s infrastructure with enhancements to Glencoe Beach and its playground, Safran Beach House, Perlman Boating Beach, the boat house, boardwalk, trellis, sun shelters, ramps and beach access points. The funds would also support further improvements to the Takiff Athletic Field and a new community greenhouse and parks maintenance space. 

According to Spain, the new maintenance facility is one of the larger projects on the list as the existing one is too old to be transitioned into an energy-efficient space — the district’s goal with a new facility.

There would be a community input process in 2025 to further vet all of the proposed improvements and developments.

Overall, park officials have said they hope to protect and improve Glencoe’s public spaces within the existing tax rate, allow for expanded usage of facilities (e.g., proposed improvements would allow residents to reap the benefits of the Safran Beach House for a longer stretch of time), and save money by improving buildings’ efficiency.

As of 2024, the park district identified $22 million in necessary capital maintenance. Spain said existing reserves do not cover a quarter of this sum and delaying maintenance would increase the length of the list and cost over time.

Throughout the early summer months, the park district collected community input, which was presented during a July Committee of the Whole meeting, as The Record previously reported. 

Per their presented findings at the time of the meeting, out of 211 mail survey responses received — a response rate of 8 percent — 72 percent of respondents supported the proposed referendum, 19 percent did not and 9 percent were undecided. 

Most respondents marked Glencoe Beach as their top priority with Perlman Boating Beach and the greenhouse at the bottom of their lists.

A topic not on the list of pending improvements under the bond referendum was the improvement or reconstruction of Friends Park, which park district data has estimated will need to be replaced within the next nine years. 

Despite its significance, the board opted not to replace Perlman Boating Beach with Friends Park on the list of bond-based improvement projects; Board Vice President Stefanie Boron asserted that swapping out projects and modifying the list could create a roadblock to securing votes in the referendum’s favor.

The proposed projects are set to take priority with the bond referendum.

Taking into account the time for community input and architectural plans and contracts to be put into place, if approved, Spain anticipates improvements would begin in 2026.

“The park district is really important not just for the users of the parks, but the whole community benefits from it,” Spain said. “People move (to Glencoe) for our beach and for our services. Without maintaining our facilities and our services, that could be a challenge for our community, and we really do need this bond referendum to pass in order to maintain the quality of service our community demands.”

Glencoe Park District Bond Referendum

Referendum Amount: $14.7 million
Additional Cost to Taxpayer (estimated, annual): $261 per $1 million in home value for 25 years
Previous Recent Referendums: 2006 — $14 million bond for Takiff Center build (approved); 2000: $1.6 million bond for Watts Ice Center renovations (approved)
Referendum Purpose: To fund improvements to the Glencoe Beach playground, Safran Beach House, boat house, boardwalk, sun shelters, ramps and beach access, as well as upgrades to the Takiff Athletic Field and a new community greenhouse and maintenance facility.

Ballot Question

“Shall the Glencoe Park District, Cook County, Illinois, improve Glencoe Beach, including the playground, Safran Beach House, boat house and racks, boardwalk, sun shelters, ramps, walls and stairs leading to the beach; improve Takiff Athletic Field; and construct and equip a new community greenhouse and a parks maintenance facility; and issue bonds to the amount of $14,700,000 for the purpose of paying the costs thereof?”