Under the Illinois Park District Code (“Park Code”), the default number of commissioners on a park board is five. The number of commissioners can be increased to seven by binding referendum or resolution. Also under the Park Code, the default term length for park commissioners is six years. The term length can be shortened to four years by referendum or resolution.
In 2012, an Oak Brook resident initiated a petition for a non-binding referendum to reduce the term of office for park commissioners from 6 years to 4 years and increase the number of commissioners from 5 to a 7-members. The questions were flawed as they did not provide voters with complete information regarding the proposed changes.
The residents rejected the non-binding proposition to increase the number of commissioners. The residents approved the non-binding question to reduce term lengths.
After the referendum, the Board considered the number of seats up at each subsequent election, and concluded that shortening terms to four years would enable any faction to take complete control of the board in a single election. The then-commissioners also believed that four year terms reduced the strength of the electorate’s voice on longer term issues and objectives. The instability in district operations that would result from shortening commissioner terms on a five-member board was determined to be considerable, and more costly and detrimental to the organization than any perceived benefit. The board concluded that 6-year terms remained the best outcome for the residents of the Park District.
