Board Shoots Down Second Ward Dog Park Plan

Three weeks ago, a Chicago Heights Park District commissioner spoke optimistically about turning a park in his ward into a dog park.

Monday he got a rude awakening.

The agenda for the April Board meeting included Ward Two Commissioner Fernando Desiderio's plan to have  turned into a dog park. It was an idea .

During public participation, two young men told the board they collected 90 signatures on their petition supporting the new dog park. 

When it came time to discuss the idea, Desiderio made the motion, but it was followed by silence. No other commissioner seconded the motion, so it died with no vote or discussion.

"I knew they were going to do this," Desiderio said after the meeting. "These guys went out and got signatures, and they couldn't even second the motion?"

After the meeting, Board President Joseph Stanfa gave his reason for the board's refusal to second the motion, starting with a revelation. 

"We're all in favor of going forward with a dog park," Stanfa said. "A dog park was on our longterm building plan. The site and location, we hadn't done any engineering. The different sizes have different liability restrictions. We hadn't done any of that homework."

Stanfa said Desiderio was moving too quickly on the dog park plan, adding that he's wanted to execute a similar plan for four years.

"I was surprised to see the Patch picture with 'dog park coming,'" Stanfa said. "He just jumped the gun, and we weren't ready to start that yet. If we can do it, we will do it. I'm not ready to say "Yes, it's a great location" or "No, it's a bad location." 

Stanfa also said Desiderio has already spent money on the restrooms and roof at , and that much of the young commissioner's budget was already depleted.

But could that have been explained in the discussion after seconding the motion?

What do you think? Does Desiderio need to slow down, or does the board need to speed up? Would you like to see a dog park in Chicago Heights?