Planned band shell in Elmhurst creates debate over fear it will detract from Wilder Mansion

Chicago Tribune

a day ago

For more than 150 years, Elmhurst's Wilder Mansion on Cottage Hill Road has been a community hub — a home, a meeting space and 'a center of progress,' according to Lydia Wilder, whose family once owned the estate.
When the mansion was acquired by the Elmhurst Park District in 1921, Wilder said the home became 'part of a larger community.' So much so that a photo of the mansion greets anyone trying to access the city's website.
Wilder recently sat in the house her father, Erskine 'Sandy' Wilder, was born in, but instead of sitting in couches surrounded by family, she sat in a foldable chair amongst Park District commissioners and area residents.
It is 'my job to preserve the legacy,' Wilder told the Park District board during a July 17 meeting at the mansion. 'I'm not in favor of what was already decided,' Wilder said.
She was referring to changes at Wilder Park included in a wider plan connected to a successful referendum passed in November. Included in the referendum are district plans to replace the Wagner Community Center, construct year-round heated restrooms at multiple parks, convert a grass field into an artificial turf field at Barnes Park and construct a community band shell in Wilder Park. The work all is included in the $89,950,000 residents OK'd via referendum with 58% of the vote, according to Board President Kevin Graf. It's one of largest Illinois issued park district bonds, according to park Commissioner Vince Spaeth.
Public comments at Elmhurst Park District meetings have spiked in the months since, but not about the Wagner Center replacement, which will use the bulk of the bond funding at $85 million. Rather, there has been vocal opposition about the placement of the planned permanent band shell.
Many opponents of the current Park District plan, including Wilder, believe the placement as stated on informational material and presented at most meetings as 'future band shell location' would interfere with or potentially block views of the historic mansion. Although the mansion would not be physically altered as part of the plan, opponents believe the $2.5 million band shell's location would harm its iconic look.
Dewberry Architects and Upland Design, firms hired to lead the district's master plan, analyzed nine potential locations for the band shell, presenting their findings to the board May 27. Both companies worked with the district on projects including Centennial and Gloss parks, as well as the Canine Corner.
Officials from the firms said a placement of the band shell on the mansion's east lawn scored the highest on their metrics in 12 categories including topography, lawn area, existing trees and obstructed views.
Andrea Hutchinson, who lives in an Elmhurst house that once belonged to her great aunt, has been a fan of the band shell concept since early discussions, but she wanted more input in the process. 'I was hoping to be a participant of where that would go,' she told the board at the July 17 meeting.
Hutchinson and Jim Schultz, a 44-year Elmhurst resident who frequented the city's parks while raising his three kids, created a petition to gauge community reaction to the placement of the band shell. The results were presented at a board meeting July 28 by Sisie Puntel-Wilcek, who spoke on behalf of Hutchinson.
'As of today, (the petition)has 748 signatures — 547 online and 201 on paper. That's 748 residents asking the Park Board to seek public input specifically on the band shell location,' Puntel-Wilcek said.
In a separate survey, Hutchinson and Schutz polled community location preference. With 251 responses, 47% said the former ice rink location was the most favorable. The Park District's planned location, which previously housed the park's moving showmobile, got 7%, according to Schutz.
Both Hutchinson and Schutz called on commissioners to 'pause this process' and acknowledge community feedback.
'If this is truly the best location, why fear public input?' Hutchinson asked.
Residents weren't the only people with concerns.
Spaeth, a Park Board commissioner for 18 years, decried the board's lack of clear communication regarding location planning and said other potential sites for the band shell were 'never vetted.'
Fellow commissioner Carolyn Ubraico, who has been on the board 22 years, indicated the May meeting was her first time seeing any additional possible locations.
'This (process) felt very different,' she said.
Other Park District officials said the process is just getting underway, and both the design of the band shell as well as its location within the park have yet to be decided.
Several design proposals have been circulated but none have been finalized, said James Rogers, the Park District's executive director.
'None of the images you see will be the band shell at Wilder Park,' he said in July.
Graf, the board president, said messaging has consistently shown one location for the band shell because the site is an initial consideration when developing a design.
'A lot of people think (the location decision) is closed,' Graf said, but with an expected construction start date to begin in 2026, the project is 'still in its very earliest stage.'
Ultimately, the approved design 'will work in any place in the park,' he said.
Graf also defended the process, saying the board spent about three months engaging the community prior to the open houses.
And, Rogers said, the engagement efforts remain underway.
He said there will be three phases of board and public input. The first includes open houses as well as online and mail surveys. Continued discussions, and future surveys including location-specific questions are included in phase two, according to the July 28 meeting.
'The open house was one component of the first phase,' Rogers said at the July 28 meeting. He also reconfirmed there was currently 'no final decision' on the band shell's location.
Before the May meeting, Dewberry and Upland were 'tasked with reexamining locations' in spring, causing the planning process to become 'deferred,' said Rogers. Rogers said analyses were shared with the board at the May 27 public meeting, as well as posted upon the board's minutes.
Although there was 'not a formal vote,' at the May meeting, a 'majority' supported the east side location, he said.
As opponents worry the new band shell's placement won't reflect a community-oriented process, Rogers said the board is 'involving the community much earlier than we normally do.'
And the efforts to open up the location possibilities seem to be making a difference.
Park District staff indicated a Wilder Park Band Shell Location Workshop would be planned Aug. 18, including a walking tour with Dewberry and Upland to revisit potential band shell locations, and where results of the residents' surveys would be reviewed.
'A breakthrough!' said lifelong Elmhurst resident Irene Dinning, a staunch opponent of the east side location, when receiving the news.
Although the band shell development is still in its 'infancy phases,' no permanent decisions are made until a final vote on the master plan project, which date is not yet determined, according to Rogers, the executive director. 'Until (the board) approves that master plan, things can change,' said Rogers. The project is an 'evolving process,' he said.
For Spaeth, the longtime commissioner, the process is the point.
'The delay will be nothing compared to if we do it wrong,' he said.