Orland Park Director of Recreation and Parks Ray Piattoni said the village received a nice holiday gift when it was presented with an Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development grant.
The village received $600,000 in mid-December and it didn’t take long to figure out how to spend that gift.
The OSLAD money will go toward the $1.5 million phase 2 project of Schussler Park. Phase 2 includes an all-inclusive playground, a pavilion, a half basketball court and other improvements.
“This will help that playground come to life in 2025,” Piattoni said of the money. “It was a nice Christmas gift this year. It was a nice holiday, feel-good moment for sure.
“The most important thing is that it will bring this playground to life. It’s such an important playground.”
The playground portion of the project will be available for all children and will be user friendly for special-needs children.
It will allow for children in wheelchairs easy access. There will be a map which features various colored themes to determine sensory stimulation throughout the playground.
The first phase of Schussler Park celebrated a grand opening in June. It featured the Michael Schofield III Sports Complex, which features football/soccer fields that can be used at night and serves as the practice field for the Orland Park Pioneers.
Orland Park residents are free to use that facility when no practices or games are scheduled.
The second phase still needs more money to be completed.
In February, village officials hosted an event with prominent area business owners to try to raise money for the cause.
The village earmarked $250,000 for the projects. The OSLAD grant is one of several the village has applied for but Piattoni said the village is continuing to raise funds to support the project.
OSLAD is a state-financed program that provides funding assistance to local government agencies for acquisition or development of land for public parks and open space.
According to the Illinois.gov website, money can go to projects as small as neighborhood parks to projects as large as community or county parks.
In December, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Gov. JB Pritzker awarded more than $55.2 million for 100 local park projects throughout Illinois.
“Since I became governor, it’s been my mission to build stronger, healthier communities across Illinois,” Pritzker said in a news release. “Through the OSLAD program we’re bringing that vision to life by awarding $55.2 million to local park projects, expanding green spaces and creating new recreational opportunities for all.”
