===== PDF PAGE 33 ===== To: Board of Commissioners From: Gina Radun Date: October 13, 2026 Executive Director: Monthly Board Report The Park District recently held ribbon-cutting ceremonies for Pioneer Park’s new playground and the Memorial/Sensory Garden in Reed-Keppler Park. These events provided an opportunity to celebrate the new spaces with community members. The Park District partnered with Educare West DuPage for Pioneer’s event, and their students served as our official “playground testers!” I also want to acknowledge the Park Foundation’s efforts in fundraising for the Memorial/Sensory Garden. In addition to volunteering at Park District events and hosting smaller fundraisers, such as the Great Turtle Race, the Memorial/Sensory Garden was the Foundation’s first large-scale fundraising project. Their fundraising efforts played an important role in bringing the project to completion and supporting our parks and community. We received positve news and are excited to announce that our bond rating has improved from A+ with a positive outlook to AA- with a positive outlook. This upgrade reflects the continued strength of our financial position and management. The improved rating is a significant achievement and reinforces our credit profile and long- term financial stability. We are working with District 94 on an intergovernmental agreement focused on shared use of recreational facilities. This includes the school district’s use of Pioneer Park and Kress Creek Farms Park along with the Park District’s use of their swimming pool. Once completed, we will bring this to the Board for approval. My term on the WeGo-Together for Kids Board is coming to an end this fall. It was a great experience, but I’ve decided not to continue for another term. I will remain active in the community through Rotary Club, Lions Club, Educare West DuPage Board, Healthy West Chicago Board & the Fire Department’s Community Task Force. Simpson Strong- Tie from West Chicago previosuly reached out to donate a pergola as a community give-back initiaive. Unfortunately, due to the desired location for the pergola, the project ultimately did not work out, but we appreciated the opportunity and encouraged them to reach out again in the future. Mike and I are exploring an additional solar panel/ grid opportunity near Zone 250. A 5MW system would be placed near the old gun club, which would store energy and generate income for the District, with a projection of about $62k per year. The proposal is currently being reviewed by ComEd. After this, we will meet again to see if the project is something we will bring to the board for consideration. On a similar note, DuPage County Stormwater Management contiues to inspect the native vegetation in our current solar panel area. Attached is a letter to Blue Path. 33 ===== PDF PAGE 34 ===== Gergana, Noelia, and I are looking at health insurance options for 2027. With the rising cost of insurance, districts are feeling the impact and are evaluating different approaches to how premiums are shared between employers and employees. Some districts use a sliding scale based on position, while others have different contribution percentages for HMO and PPO, or offer incentives for employees who opt out of coverage. For the current year, employees contribute 10%, while the District contributes 90% for both HMO and PPO plans. Vision and dental were previously 100% covered by the District; beginning last year, employees contributed 3% while the District contributes 97%. Since these benefits had historically been fully covered, this change allowed us to better understand utilization and how many employees were actively using the benefits versus electing coverage because there was no employee cost. Employees also have the option to opt out of medical coverage and/or dental/ vision coverage (combined). Staff volunteered at the President’s Cup to help raise funds for the Parks Foundation. Their participation helped support the memorial/sensory garden. It was a great experience and everyone enjoyed their day. Once we know the funds raised, we’ll keep the Board posted! We were able to connect with Wayne Township to discuss the proposed Klein Road bike path in more detail. This path would require an easement through Meadow Woods Park. I believe this path would improve connectivity and recreational opportunities in the area. For discussion and approval tonight is a letter requesting that the Park District agrees that no adverse effects are occurring to public recreational properties owned and maintained by the Park District as a result of the proposed construction of this path. I received an email inquiring about adding a park to an unincorporated neighborhood in West Chicago- north of Rt64 and west of Rt59. While this area is not within the Park District’s boundaries and we are not actively pursuing this as a possibility at this time, I wanted to make you aware of the request should the topic come up in future discussions or requests. The annual IPRA Conference registration recently opened. This will take place from Thursday, January 28-Saturday, January 30. Early bird registration goes through December 18th. Please let me know before then if you would like to attend so I can get you registered. Lastly, below is a picture from Wacky World’s booth at NRPA, where they showcased Treetop Escape. 34 ===== PDF PAGE 35 ===== September 14, 2026 TO: Diane Bouckaert 700 Springer Drive Lombard, IL 60148 Reed Keppler Park Solar Panels Stormwater Permit No: SM2019-0121 Date of Inspection: 9/11/2026 Re: Dear Diane Bouckaert, DuPage County Stormwater Management (SWM) performs inspections of permitted natural enhancement areas until vegetation performance standards are met. The purpose of these inspections is to monitor the establishment of the native vegetation and the overall success of enhancement areas. When the performance standards have been met the security related to the native plantings may be returned. The owner is responsible for all enhancement measures until the performance standards have been met and sign-off has been obtained. Based on this inspection, please find the following comments and recommendations: 1. As a reminder, annual monitoring reports are due January 31st of each year. Please provide a copy of the annual monitoring report, once it has been completed. 2. The majority of the areas planted with native vegetation was mowed at the time of inspection. These areas are intended to be a native plant community to replace buffer functions from the placement of solar panel panels within the floodplain. Mowing must cease and vegetation management should be continued to ensure future performance standards are met. 3. SWM will re-inspect the natural enhancement area during the 2027 growing season. 4. Please be advised, this is the fifth notification of non-compliance for this permit. Please notify our office in writing as to what steps are being taken to bring this site into compliance with the DuPage County Countywide Stormwater and Flood Plain Ordinance and the Stormwater Management Permit. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at 630-407-6728 or jenna.fahey@dupagecounty.gov. Sincerely, Jenna Fahey, PWS Jenna Fahey Wetland Program Manager CC: Tom Dabareiner, City of West Chicago; Michael Gasparini, West Chicago Park District, Maria Delacusdra, Blue Path Finance 35