Construction is set to begin this February for the Klein Creek Stream Bank Stabilization Project (Section III). For more information and updates during construction, see the Village of Carol Stream’s project website available at www.carolstream.org. The project is an undertaking of the Village in cooperation with the Carol Stream Park District and partially funded by grants from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and DuPage County Stormwater Management. Construction will close some of the paths in Armstrong Park, as well as the parking lot off of Idaho Street (Kids World). A map of the closures will be maintained on the project website. The construction will involve heavy equipment, so please obey all signs and detours. A lot of dirt will be relocated to improve the sledding hill, so expect periods with heavy truck traffic on the surrounding streets. Substantial completion is scheduled for July 3, 2024, followed by 3 years of maintenance and monitoring of the native plants.
For more information, see the project website at the Village of Carol Stream, carolstream.org.
The Carol Stream Park District Board, Administration and Employees embarked on a Community Needs Assessment (hereinafter referred to as “CNA”) survey in May 2023 to obtain resident opinions about our programs and services and to gauge how much residents engage with the Park District, whether they are active participants in programs or just enjoy the beauty of the parks and trails within the community. Conducting a CNA survey every five years helps us understand resident needs for change or improvement. The survey guides us in the evaluation of trends and determines if the park district is focused in the right direction. The results serve as a guide for developing ideas and action plans that will allow the District to grow and evolve to meet the changing needs of the community.
We are pleased to share the results with you.
Pictured from left to right: Park District Executive Director Sue Rini, Park District Board Commissioner Tim Powers, State Representative Jennifer Sanalitro, Frank Parisi, Lisa Parisi, Thomas Parisi.
CAROL STREAM: On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, State Representative Jennifer Sanalitro visited the Carol Stream Park District to honor long-time resident Frank Parisi, as “Constituent of the Month” for the Illinois 48TH House District.
The Carol Stream Park District and Executive Director Sue Rini nominated Frank Parisi, a non-elected member of the Carol Stream Parks Foundation, who has made a positive impact in the community over many years. As one of the founding members of the Foundation and former Foundation President, Frank has volunteered his time and service to raise money for the park district youth scholarship fund. Also, as part of his work with the Foundation, he helped raise money to build the Veteran’s Memorial Plaza in Town Center. In his professional career, Frank was the lead architect on designing Fountain View Recreation Center, a building that is becoming one of the focal points of the Carol Stream community.
The “Constituent of the Month” program is organized by Representative Sanalitro to recognize unique and outstanding accomplishments from community members in Illinois’ 48th House District. State Representative Sanalitro presented Parisi with a certificate of award and words of commemoration. Frank was joined by his wife Lisa, and son Thomas. Park Commissioner Tim Powers, and other Park District staff were present to congratulate Frank and thank him for his service. Photos were taken. Find all photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/csparkdistrict/albums/72177720313523548
Frank Parisi and State Representative Jennifer Sanalitro
From left to right: Thomas Parisi, Lisa Parisi, Frank Parisi, State Representative Jennifer Sanalitro.
The Carol Stream Park District’s McCaslin Park is home to a cricket field. The field is located just northeast of Coyote Crossing Mini Golf. The American Cricket Conference of players were often seen playing on the field for hours.
Over time, the field started sloping up to a clear drop-off of about 18 inches. This meant that from east to west there was an 18-inch change in the grade which wasn’t conducive for competitive and safe game play. In agreement with the American Cricket Conference, their 2023 season would have to be moved from McCaslin Park in order for us to get the project going.
We needed a good amount of dirt to level out the sloping; and as good stewards of park district dollars, the District sought out ways to obtain dirt at no cost for recycling.
The Park District started the Bierman Park/Heritage Lake trail restoration early September of 2022. We transported the dirt removed from that project to extra land at the southwest end of the cricket field. You might have seen those dirt mounds driving by from North Avenue. The trail was completed by November 2022. The District then applied for the permit in DuPage County to grade the cricket field, receiving it in April of 2023.
Grading the cricket field took the months of June and July of 2023. We used various equipment such as skid sterrs, excavators and road graders. Then rocks were extracted to smooth out the dirt. In September of 2023, parks staff seeded the field. It took thirty 50-pound bags of seed. Now we wait for the seed to grow and thicken, which can take a couple seasons depending on the weather. The decision to allow cricket play back on the field will be determined in June of 2024.
We are excited to be replacing the artificial turf infields at McCaslin Park Sports Complex. The project began on November 6, after sports events were completed for the season. The artificial turf infields have seen thousands of games since being installed ten years ago. The $540K capital project will provide another ten years of reliable play – no matter the weather. A grant received from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for tourism attractions will cover $37.6K of the cost. We are planning a Grand Re-Opening of the sports complex for our baseball and softball leagues in the spring of 2024.
Here are photos of the turf replacement process. Days 1 and 2 was removal of the old turf. Days 3 and 4 was the grading of the fields to lay down the turf. Day 5 and beyond is the turf installation, anticipated to be done before Thanksgiving.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/csparkdistrict/albums/72177720312761668
The Carol Stream Park District would like to extend its sincere appreciation to Dan Bird for his remarkable 20 years of service as a Park Board Commissioner.
Dan’s passion for enhancing our community has left quite a mark on the Carol Stream Park District. Throughout his tenure, Dan has been part of many projects such as the building of Fountain View Recreation Center, McCaslin Park Sports Complex, working with the County on the storm water project at Armstrong Park, the pouring of concrete for the Carol Stream Parks Foundation’s Bike Fix It stations, fundraiser participant and advocate for the Veterans Memorial Plaza at Town Center – just to name a few.
Dan’s leadership, support and guidance has helped shape the district into a thriving and inclusive space for all residents and guests. On behalf of the entire community and the Carol Stream Park District, we want to express our gratitude for Dan’s outstanding service.
Pictured left to right are Board President Jacqueline Jeffery, Commissioner Dan Bird, and Park District Executive Director Sue Rini. Dan received a Certificate of Appreciation and memento from the Illinois Association of Park Districts that recognized Dan for his years of service and educational advancement as part of the Commissioners’ Development Program.
On Monday, Oct 16, volunteer Jim Reuter (former Executive Director) came out to close the Purple Martin colony on Balog Island in Armstrong Park for the season. This required lowering the houses to a workable level and cleaning out the old nests, and closing the entrances. Migration begins mid-August, and the birds are gone. They migrate through North America down to South America each year.
Closing the entrances or “bird doors” prevents invasive birds, such as sparrows, from moving in before the Purple Martins migrate back. The sparrows kill young Purple Martin fledglings and their mothers. The Purple Martin birdhouses are designed apartment-style specifically for them and provide safety and protection from the elements, especially during the early summer nesting season. Purple Martin scouts usually arrive during the month of April, and by May the colony birds are paired off and setting up housekeeping. The months of June and July see much activity as eggs are laid, babies hatch and fledging begins.
You can find Balog Island at the west side of Armstrong Park.
Sue Rini, former Deputy Director, officially assumed the Executive Director position when Jim Reuter retired on July 21, 2023.
Sue has 24 years of park district experience. As Deputy Director, Sue oversaw Finance, Human Resources, Risk Management, Information Technology, Marketing, and Registration Services. She previously served as Carol Stream’s Director of Finance & Administration, Superintendent of Human Resources & Risk Management, and Recreation Supervisor. Before joining the park district, Sue worked in the private sector specializing in banking research and education.
Some of Sue’s accomplishments include consecutive GFOA Awards for Excellence in Financial Accounting since 2009, Distinguished Agency Accreditation since 2007, Gold Medal Award winner in 2002, 2008 and runner up in 2014, and a $37M referendum in 2010 enabling the construction of the Fountain View Recreation Center, McCaslin Sports Complex, multiple playground and recreational trail improvements. Sue has played a significant role in being awarded over $5.4M in grants.
Sue has served in a leadership capacity on numerous industry related advisory groups, committees and boards. She currently serves on the PDRMA Board of Directors and is an active member of the IPRA Accounting & Finance Section. She was also a speaker at various parks and recreation conference session, professional development and supervisor symposiums.
Sue lived in Carol Stream for twenty years to raise her family. She and her spouse George have three daughters and four grandchildren. Sue enjoys boating, water sports and spending time with family.
Northern Long-Eared Bats at Community Park
The northern long-eared bat is an endangered species native to the greater Midwest and Northeast. At the start of recent renovations at Community Park, the Carol Stream Park District learned that the park falls within the migration pattern for the northern long-eared bats. These bats often live inside of trees, and although their main cause of mortality is disease, another reason for their recent rapid decline in population is loss of habitat, often due to construction.
The Carol Stream Park District is the recipient of a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) through DuPage County to cover a portion of the Community Park improvements planned through input from the surrounding residents during the Master Planning Process. The grant requires that the land be inspected by DuPage County landscape engineers, trained to survey the land as well as identify wildlife. During the inspection, park district staff were notified that Community Park was a part of the northern long-eared bat migration pattern, nesting in trees during June and July. Work at the park was restricted until each tree that was slated for removal was carefully checked by the County’s landscape engineers. No bats were found in these particular trees. Thus, renovations continue to be on schedule.
The northern long-eared bat is an integral part of the ecosystem. They naturally regulate the insect population by preying on insects using echolocation. It’s safe to say, now that we know a little bit about these bats, that we are doing our best to keep them around. A large part of our efforts to encourage the survival of these bats is keeping trees (even some dead ones) in our parks! We hope to keep the northern long-eared bat in Community Park for many years to come!
Dog Vomit Fungus (and why it’s no big deal)
Recently there have been a few complaints of dog vomit around our parks, and we’re happy to inform you that it isn’t dog vomit – it’s dog vomit fungus. This slime mold is not so creatively named for its strong resemblance to dog vomit, but rest assured there is no need to blame your neighbor’s golden retriever – it is totally naturally occurring. The most important thing to know about dog vomit fungus is that it isn’t harmful to people, pets or wildlife (but it’s definitely gross looking).
Technically dog vomit fungus is a slime mold, and it is most often found in tree bark, wood and mulch especially in dark, moist areas – thus explaining why you might see it on the playground in mulch from time to time.
So now you know all about dog vomit fungus and why it’s no big deal.
So don’t blame me! 
