County Committees: Property and Recreation Committee

County Committees: Property and Recreation Committee

I ask each voter, "Are there any issues at the County level that concerns you or your family?" Some people say, "No," others mention taxes or roads. If county committees received the same scrutiny that state and federal ones do, I'm sure more voters would be upset at how little county board members actually do for the residents of the county. The Property and Recreation Committee is one example where the committee meets for 5 or 6 minutes every few months, but does not actually do the job established for it.

The Property and Recreation Committee

This Committee shall:

1. Review and direct the maintenance of all County Buildings and facilities, including county parks.
2. Work as a liaison for the Board with the Public Building Commission in so far as all County Buildings are concerned.
3. Review and approve budget transfers from Foley Park.
4. Prepare rules and regulations for the operation of all facilities under the control of the County.
5. Recommend additional buildings and facilities as needed.
6. Review monthly reports presented to the Public Building Commission on the operation and maintenance of MidAmerica Airport.

The Public Building Commission is established in Chapter 5, Article IV of the County Code. This is a government entity exercising the powers and authority of the Illinois' "Public Building Commission Act" (55 ILCS Sec 5/5-1055). This committee is responsible for coordinating work done by the Building Commission in relation to County buildings.

Chapter 27 of the County Code is known as "Park Regulations" for Foley Park. The Parks Department page lists five other Parks maintained by the County, but not listed (at least as far as I could find) in the County Code. Pavilion registration is $25-$35/day, and park use permits are $25. The County Code specifies that these fees are to be deposited in the County General Fund, so it is not clear to me at this time what "budget transfers from Foley Park" the committee is actually reviewing.

I reviewed the minutes from the Property and Recreation committee for 2022 (Feb, Apr, Jul) and found that none of them had any references to reports on MidAmerica Airport -- even though the Public Building Commission minutes from June had several reports regarding MidAmerica. This is an example of where the public is not being well represented by current committee members.

In closing, the Property and Recreation Committee appears to be one of those government bodies that was created with good intentions, but is not doing much for the County at this time. If I am assigned to this Committee once elected to the county board, I will make sure each meeting addresses every responsibility assigned to the committee and that those responsibilities are documented in the minutes for the public.