At the Glenview Park District, we have a vision of Glenview being a community in which everyone enjoys happiness, health and an appreciation of the environment on a daily basis. Providing the Glenview community with high-quality parks and fun outdoor recreation opportunities is one of many ways we work towards that goal.

The Park District recently completed a Field and Court Assessment across all parks in May 2022 to look at the community’s use and needs as they relate to all of our sports fields and courts throughout all of our parks in Glenview. Recently, renovations at District 63 and District 34 schools needed to reduce field space and resulted in a loss of six baseball fields managed and programmed through the Glenview Park District. Additionally, the Park District has seen continual growth and increased demand within both indoor and outdoor pickleball programming and play. Finally, the District’s 10-year Comprehensive Master Plan (adopted in January 2018) identified the need to create Site Master Plans for all neighborhood and community parks in order to better identify accessibility needs, amenity deficiencies and ongoing maintenance needs within our Glenview parks. In response to all of these factors, the Field and Court Assessment was completed by a third-party contractor to objectively assess the current condition, demand and needs for our park users.

The Park District heard residents through stakeholder interviews and community surveys that were part of the process of developing our 10-year Comprehensive Master Plan. Flick Park was identified most frequently by residents as the park most in need of improvements. At 39 acres, Flick Park is the third largest of the five “community parks” managed by the District and one of the most heavily used parks. “Community parks” are defined as larger parks designed to focus on meeting community-wide recreation needs, while “neighborhood parks” (10.5 acres or less) are generally designed for informal active and passive recreation for users living within a half-mile radius.

Pickleball was identified as a top trending recreation activity in Illinois in the 10-year Comprehensive Master Plan. The increasing popularity of pickleball began as a trend among active adults and the sport has only continued to grow due to increased exposure during the pandemic. The active adult population in Glenview is and will continue to be a major user group within at our Glenview parks and facilities. According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association, which tracks participation in 120 sports and activities, pickleball has been the fastest growing sport in the U.S. for two years in a row, with nearly 5 million players. Park Districts throughout Illinois are responding to increased popularity and demand for the sport, including the September 2022 announcement that the Chicago Park District will be building 50 new pickleball courts.

The Glenview Park District first established pickleball courts at Flick Park in 2012 by painting dual court lines on existing tennis courts. In 2020, the park district converted 2 tennis courts into six dedicated pickleball courts due to increasing interest and demand.

In the 10-year Comprehensive Master Plan research, the addition of more pickleball courts was identified as a priority by Glenview residents in stakeholder interviews, an online engagement platform, and an eight-page survey that was mailed to a random sample of households throughout the Glenview Park District. General comments relating to improving existing parks focused heavily on safety and security recommendations including improved accessibility and age-appropriate amenities.

At the July 2022 Board Meeting, the board approved the following improvements and enhancements at Flick Park, based on the Field and Court Assessment: the addition of eight dedicated pickleball courts, enhancement of the existing four sand volleyball courts, improvements to the outdoor ice rink that overlays the sand volleyball courts, and better pedestrian and park user access in and around the courts to meet ADA accessibility standards. The estimated cost for all of these improvements is $1,222,000.

Flick Park was identified as the preferred site for future pickleball expansion based on feedback from an online survey and stakeholder meetings with Glenview Park District residents and pickleball players, as well as current park features. By locating a new bank of eight courts to the south of the north parking lot, pickleball players will have the ability to disperse throughout the park, alleviating concerns about overcrowding. The second location also presents an opportunity for the Park District to trial and implement programming or a reservation system without disrupting the free-play atmosphere that is highly valued by existing players. Additionally, Flick Park is centrally located to all District residents, has lighting, parking, access from a main road and restrooms.

The District held a community outreach meeting on September 14 at 6 p.m. at Flick Park to discuss the proposed improvements and enhancements to the park. Residents living alongside the park provided valuable feedback regarding noise levels, programmatic access for Glenview residents, and stormwater management among other topics. Staff have incorporated design improvements and enhancements for the pickleball court expansion and volleyball court enhancements. In addition, staff have developed an OSLAD grant proposal for additional funding to address further park improvements. The proposal includes enhancing access to the sled hill, renovating the basketball court, renovating the south 2-5-year-old playground with ADA surfacing and improving park drainage.

On November 16, the Park & Facility Services and Environmental Committee will hold a meeting to discuss the Flick Park proposed enhancements, as well as concepts for the addition of a Mustang Baseball field at Westbrook, a contract extension for landscaping support services, and a bid to replace the roof on the Roosevelt Pool Building. The meeting will be held at Park Center in the Lakeview Room at 6 p.m. – residents are welcome and encouraged to come and learn more about the projects. Visit our government meeting portal to see all recent and upcoming public meetings and topics.
Flick Park Improvement Presentation 11.16.22
Sound Study
Parking Study
Flick Park Improvements FAQ