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River Forest Community Center Board of Governors' Response to Park District Survey - May, 2008
The River Forest Community Center applauds the Park District’s selection of Leisure Vision to gather information about the park and recreation services available to the residents of River Forest. However, in the survey that was recently distributed to approximately 2000 residents of River Forest, there are several questions that have been included about the Community Center that are somewhat misleading.
First and foremost, the Community Center supports the concept of providing cooperative programs for the benefit of residents and program participants. To this end, the Community Center has had discussions with the Park District about joint programs which can be of mutual benefit for both agencies.
However, a key point that was omitted from the survey is that the Community Center is a self-supporting agency and does not rely on tax dollars. The Community Center serves the residents of River Forest and surrounding communities and derives its revenue from program user fees. It is a self supporting agency and, unlike the Park District, does not have the ability to tax for its programs and services.
The Community Center is a not-for-profit organization that has been a vital part of the community since it was founded in 1975. The Center offers a number of recreational, educational and social programs to participants of all ages ranging from tots to youth to adults and seniors. Programs include child care, preschool and tot classes, summer camp programs, dance, gymnastics, aerobics, theatre, general adult recreation and activities and trips for senior citizens.
Since the Community Center and Park District are separate entities, there have been discussions between the two agencies over the past several years about cooperative programs in order to avoid duplication of services. Since the Community Center does not have tax dollars to subsidize programs, it generally must charge a higher fee for its programs than a taxing body in order to cover its costs.
While the Community Center has expressed a willingness to develop cooperative programs, at no time, has there been discussion between the boards about merging the two agencies. Furthermore, the insinuation that a merger of the Community Center and Park District would result in enhanced services and be beneficial for taxpayers has yet to be determined.
As it has done for the past thirty three years, the Board of Governors of the Community Center is committed to its success and ensuring that a variety of programs and services are made available to participants at a reasonable cost. As an integral part of the village, the Community Center supports the Park District in its efforts to better serve residents and sincerely hopes that additional cooperative program opportunities will be identified once the results of the Park District’s survey are compiled.
Board of Governors
River Forest Community Center
River Forest Community Center Board of Governors' response to the Park District
Although much has been written about a potential merger between the Community Center and Park District during the past six months, a merger has not occurred. All merger discussions have been discontinued due to the Park District’s inability to satisfactorily answer a number of key questions including the financial impact that a merger would have on village taxpayers and, equally as important, the impact on existing RFCC programs, staff and program participants. The Community Center’s complete response to the Park District can be viewed in .pdf format by clicking here.
The Community Center’s Board of Governors is committed to the success of the organization and has repeatedly stated its willingness to work with the Park District to develop cooperative programs. However, it is also the opinion of the Community Center’s board that cooperative programs can be developed without the agencies being merged.
—Dick Chappell
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Download a .pdf copy of the Community Center Response. |
Upcoming Events
Full-day Programs for 2010-2011 School Year
Current Participants and River Forest Residents - 4/12 at 9:00am
Open Registration - 4/19 at 9:00am
Half-day Programs for 2010-2011 School Year
Current Participants and River Forest Residents - 2/8 at 9:00am
Open Registration - 2/15 at 9:00am
Current Participants and River Forest Residents - 3/8 at 9:00am
Open Registration - 3/15 at 9:00am
Registration for Early Childhood & Camp programs must be done in person.
Call or visit RFCC today for more details!