Oak Park Newspaper

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August 12, 2007. About 20 Oak Park residents met with representatives of Oak Park agencies to express their concerns about plans to remove trees at Austin Gardens as part of the Austin Garders Master Plan, phase one of which the Park District newsletter recently announced would commence early this September. The Plan was adopted in April 2005.

Concerns were also expressed that the landscape architects are allowed to take control of public meetings, even taking votes at those meetings; and to give quasi-official information to the press. -- Information, one might add, which the press then considers unnecessary to verify.

Since some of the representatives present agreed the trees cut down over the past 3-4 years were cut down as part of park maintenance, not the Master Plan commencing in September, attendees requested a schedule indicating which trees are planned to be be cut down -- detailing WHICH PHASE & WHEN, WHERE and WHY. Marty Bracco and Mike Grandy, from the Park Board and Park District, agreed to hold another meeting addressing this issue, soon to be announced.

Agency persons present: Marty Bracco, Commissioner, Park Board; Mike Grandy, Suprintendant, Buildings and Grounds, Park District; John Seaton, Director,Oak Park Conservatory.

Other persons present included Patrick Dahlstrom, citizens oversight committee; volunteer Pat Eichenhold with another park volunteer; other Oak Park residents, including Rose Meyer, Barbara Mullarky, Gregg Kuenster, Les Golden, Cheryl Weiss; and residents of the immediate neighborhood on Ontario and in Holley Court.

Editors Note:

The last time that I took a stroll through the area of Austin Gardens and
observed the area, I found lots of cigarette butts and waste left here and there. The native plants were greatly uninspiring and the removal of
trees to give more light seems a bit narrow in creativity. It would make
more sense to us to transfer the native plants to a more visible area like
the region in front of the War memorial in Scoville Park (an area that
each year gets new annual plants). The native plants could be arranged
in a formal style and they would still be native. If no one cares about the
native plants they could be removed. To kill healthy trees because of
a lack of thought given the matter does not seem worthy of a town with
larger brains than that.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 6, 2007

NOTE CHANGED CONTACT PHONE NUMBER AT END OF RELEASE

WE LOVE AUSTIN GARDENS GROUP FORMS TO SAVE TREES IN AUSTIN GARDENS RALLY SCHEDULED SUNDAY 2:00 p.m. IN AUSTIN GARDENS

A group of Oak Park residents has formed to protest the planned cutting down of numerous trees in Austin Gardens, Forest near Lake Street. The group, composed of nearby residents and senior citizens residing in Holley Court Terrace, is disturbed at the planned destruction of the wooded, shady area that they enjoy.

"Whatever the rationale the Oak Park Park District has, we value this area as unique in Oak Park," said Cheryl Weiss, one of the organizers of the rally. "It is always shady and cool, no matter the temperature, and a wide variety of animal and plant life has adapted to that shade and coolness," Weiss said. "It is unique in Oak Park, a cathedral of serenity to those who like to walk or just sit on its benches."

The rally will occur at 2:00, Sunday, August 12, in the shaded area of Austin Gardens. Speakers will include certified arborists and neighborhood users of the park.

"The Oak Park Park District continues in its practice of destroying the environment. From Field Park to Maple Park and now to Austin Gardens, they feel that cutting down trees is a necessary part of development. We disagree.

"We hope that representatives of the village of Oak Park, who have committed themselves to a greening policy, will attend and lend support to our efforts to save our unique shaded area," said Weiss.