St. Charles Park District Celebrates 100 Years of Community Service

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The first Park Board consisted of three members, who implemented the vision of having parks and open space along the banks of the Fox River by purchasing 35 acres of land for the development of Pottawatomie Park. With this purchase, the District played a key role in making St. Charles a resort community in the 1920s. In time, the park offered tables, benches, swings, a boat launch, refreshment stands with ice cream and soda pop, a merry-go-round and a pavilion for dancing.

By the 1930s, the Park Board purchased a number of acres north of the park and Lester J. and Dellora A. Norris donated additional acres. This led to the development of the swimming pool complex, 9-hole golf course, ball diamond with stone bleachers and amphitheater.

As the community continued to grow, the District offered recreation programming at Pottawatomie Park and used local neighborhood parks and school facilities in cooperation with the City and School District. In April of 1967, City and Township voters approved the formation of the St. Charles Park District as a separate taxing body that was charged with providing public park and recreation services to the residents of St. Charles Township. The initial Board was made up of five members. As growth of the City of St. Charles and the Township continued through the 1970s and early 80s, the decision was made to broaden the representation of the community by increasing the Board to seven members in 1983.

Just as the St. Charles Township Park District played a key role in making St. Charles a resort community in the 1920s, today, the St. Charles Park District plays an important part in the vitality of this community, providing open space and programming that appeal to a wide cross-section of the population of the District. St. Charles Park District provides an abundance of programs and facilities that meet the diverse abilities, ages, genders and interests of its residents.

As trends in recreation changed over the years, the District prepared itself by acquiring and developing new park sites and exciting facilities and expanding recreational programming offerings to all age levels. Also, the District assumed a leadership role in environmental education and natural resource conservation, protecting and maintaining numerous natural areas for the enjoyment of future generations.

With many of the parks and facilities located on historically significant sites, and many more protecting valuable wildlife habitat and natural resources, the District is a primary contributor to preserving the cultural and ecological heritage of the St. Charles region. The recreational, open space and natural habitat opportunities offered by the St. Charles Park District are rich and varied.

With nearly 1,500 acres of park and open space owned or managed by the St. Charles Park District and a variety of active and passive recreation opportunities for people of all ages, the St. Charles Park District provides award-winning facilities and programming to its community.