Current sustainability initiatives implemented at the Skokie Park District:
Staff Environmental Action Team
Formed more than 30 years ago, this park district staff team meets regularly and has initiated many of the energy saving and recycling projects below, in facilities and in parks.
Click here for the Skokie Park District environmental policy.
Parks
- Three community gardens have been planted at Winnebago (Ho-Chunk) Park, the Skokie Heritage Museum and the Park Services Center. Park patrons are welcome to pick produce for their own use and the park services staff picks any remaining ripe produce weekly for donation to the Niles Township food pantry.
- Food composting stations have been added, through cooperation with the Village of Skokie, to Central Park, Devonshire Park, Hamlin Park, Navajo (Diné) Park, Oakton Park, Schack Park, Timber Ridge Park and at the Weber Leisure Center.
- LED Lighting conversions have been completed at: all 10 of the Skokie Park District’s parking lots; all interior and exterior fixtures at Laramie Park sports courts; the Terminal Park softball/baseball field; all exterior fixtures at Skokie Sports Park including mini golf, the batting cages and the driving range and its structure; the sports lighting for Oakton Park and the eight tennis courts at the Skokie Park Tennis Center. The sports field lighting at Laramie and Terminal Parks is complete.
- All park shelters throughout the District have been converted to LED.
- District-wide there are 5.75 acres of native/pollinator friendly planting areas, not including the 13 acres at Emily Oaks Nature Center. In 2020 the District received a grant for $20,000 from the Illinois Clean Energy Foundation to convert 2 acres of turf(1 acre at Hamlin Park and 1 acre at Skokie Sports Park) to pollinator friendly plants.
- As part of the Lawler Park renovation, just over a third of an acre of turf is being converted to native and pollinator friendly plants. A portion of the project will be funded by the OSLAD (Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development) grant for $357,000 awarded to the District through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
- During the fall leaves are mulched using special kits attached to the mower decks (no disposal).
- In 2020 the district developed an Integrated Pest Management Plan.
District Facilities
- LED lighting conversions are 100 percent complete at Tot Learning Center, Park Services Center, Skatium Ice Arena, Skokie Sports Park, Skokie Heritage Museum, Skokie Water Playground, Devonshire Aquatic Center and Dammrich Rowing Center. The remaining facilities, the Weber Leisure Center, the Oakton Community Center, the Devonshire Cultural Center and the Emily Oaks Nature Center are over 90% completed.
- The following facilities have solar panels on their roofs: Weber Leisure Center (457 panels, 259.35 kW system), Devonshire Cultural Center (81 panels, 33.21 kW system), Devonshire Aquatic Center (63 panel, 30.24 kW system) and the Emily Oaks Nature Center (44 panel, 17.60 kW system).
- Mixed use recycling containers are being expanded to all facility entrances and high-use parks throughout the district.
- Staff recycle printer and toner cartridges.
- Maintenance staff use greener alternative cleaners.
- Low flow showers, high-efficiency hand dryers and automated paper dispensers have been installed.
- Staff reuse paper by copying on used one-sided paper.
- Staff purchases copy paper with recycled content.
- Staff recycle fluorescent light bulbs.
- Used golf balls are sold from the driving range to a secondary purchaser for reuse.
- Cardboard recycling is available at the Weber Leisure Center and Park Services.
- Motion sensor lights are used in district facilities to save energy.
Special Events Sustainability
Recycling at large community special events such as the Skokie Festival of Cultures, Skokie Fireworks Festival and Skokie’s Backlot Bash. In 2019, Collective Resource, Inc. successfully separated two-thirds of a ton of food waste at the Backlot Bash, which went off for compost (diverting it from a landfill).
Districtwide Marketing
- Staff have greatly reduced the use of posters and fliers, instead using digital signage and online postings.
- Four seasonal printed program guides have been reduced from 96-pages to 24-pages. Full guides are now found online.
- The Skatium Ice Arena publication is now now direct-marketed to area age range households only, and has been reduced from four to three annual guides.
- District-wide newsletters are now sent via email.
Park Services
- Propane powered mowing equipment now burns cleaner and has reduced gasoline usage.
- Any materials that can be recycled during playground renovations or construction projects are. This includes: Sand play surfacing has been donated to local water departments for use in repairing water line breaks. Concrete footings from play equipment and amenity replacements are brought to concrete plants where they are ground up and reused. Bricks from the various paver areas that are being replaced are ground up and reused. After the completion of fencing and backstop removals, fencing materials are brought to metal recycling vendors.
- The district has a vehicle and equipment "no idle" policy.
- Certain pieces of equipment that use diesel for fuel now make use of biodiesel.
- Salt procedures have been established to reduce the amount of granular salt used during snow events. Brine is used for pretreatment before snow events, equipment is calibrated to ensure proper amounts of salt are used, temperature sensors are used to measure pavement temperatures to determine what products will be used and at what rates, and salt is pre-wetted to increase activation and efficiency.
- A metal recycling bin is located at the Park Services Center for district-wide recycling.
- Oil filters from vehicles and equipment are crushed and recycled.
Skokie’s Spring Greening
The park district and its community agency partners present Skokie's annual super recycling of household items. Skokie's Spring Greening website.
Earth Day Celebration
Emily Oaks Nature Center annually celebrates the earth by commemorating Earth Day. Visitors commune with nature through themed games, activities, music, food and a native plant sale.