Issue link: https://pdop.uberflip.com/i/611742
5 www.pdop.org Park Renewal Projects Austin Gardens Environmental Education Center The construction of the Austin Gardens Environmental Education Center (EEC) is on course for completion in June 2016. This Platinum LEED-designed facility will be a showcase for sustainable design featuring a geo- thermal system, solar panels, a green roof, storm water harvesting, bioswales, and an energy efficient building envelope and mechanical systems. Look for grand opening festivities in summer 2016 as well as nature-based camps, and programming for all ages at the EEC. Austin Gardens Community Meeting Mark your calendar for Tuesday, January 5 at 7pm for the Austin Gardens master site plan community meeting at Brookdale Oak Park (previously Holly Court Terrace), 1111 Ontario Street in Oak Park. Austin Gardens has been described as Oak Park's secret garden due to its location in the center of downtown Oak Park. The park's woodland plant life and mature trees shelter Austin Gardens from the urban life that surrounds it. With the Environmental Education Center nearing completion, your input is important to help plan for future improve- ments to Austin Gardens. To view the current Austin Gardens site plan and for more information visit www. pdop.org. Elsie Jacobsen Discovery Garden Opening September 12! The garden is open. You are invited to stop by for a visit! On Saturday, September 12 the Elsie Jacobsen Discovery Garden was officially opened to the public. Elsie Jacobsen lead the effort to save the Conservatory from demolition in the 1970s because she understood the importance of staying connected to nature. This new interactive garden area connects visitors of all ages to the sights, sounds and textures of nature while teaching us about sustainability and the many unique eco-systems all around us. This facility would not be possible without the visionary efforts of Elsie Jacobsen and the dedica- tion and generosity of the Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory. Did you know… • Logs from diseased Ash trees have been repurposed as play features at the Elsie Jacobsen Discovery Garden and at Mills Park. • The Park District also repurposed dead and diseased trees for firewood at our annual family campout and as mulch around the trees in our parks. • A vendor from the Oak Park Farmers market provided the pumpkins for our annual Fall Fest. • Nearly 30 families participated in the Park District's Nature Scavenger Hunt this fall and enjoyed their magnifying glass prizes. • Top soil removed from Julian and Brooks Middle Schools, to make way for the all-weather fields, was repurposed in several ways. The Park District stored some soil for use in the spring for field maintenance. We also shared soil with the Berwyn Park District and utilized the remainder to level off the ground at Austin Gardens to create one of our three outdoor ice rinks. • The Park District is planning to install an underground cistern at Longfellow Park in the spring that will capture rain water and spray pad water and repurpose it to irrigate the adjacent field and grounds. This project is anticipated to be completed by summer 2016. New All-Weather Fields at Brooks and Julian Middle Schools It is anticipated by the time you read this, the new all-weather fields at Brooks and Julian Middle Schools will be open for use. This project was a community collaboration funded by a partnership of governmental entities, sports affiliates and the Good Heart, Work Smart Foundation. The fields will be used by students on school days during school hours and will be scheduled for use by our sports affiliates during various other days and times. However, they are open to the public when they are not scheduled for programmed activities.