As the Park District of Forest Park gears up to replace its main playground and turf field come fall, members of the Forest Park Youth Soccer Association have complained about transparency in the process — most recently about a cost increase for them to use the turf field.
At the February park board meeting, Jackie Iovinelli, executive director of the park district, said the board should re-examine the fee structure for all sports that use its facilities and cap the number of hours each organization is allowed on them. Park Board President Tim Gillian asked if she’d bring the board a proposal to amend the fee structure and cap hours. Iovinelli said she would for limiting league time on fields, which wouldn’t come until after construction of the new field is completed, but “in the meantime, we need to just make sure that all of the entities are paying” a similar amount.
Days after the February meeting, the park district raised the youth soccer group’s rental fee for the turf field from $4 an hour to $25 an hour for the upcoming spring season. The soccer group was the only organization that saw an increased cost, according to Iovinelli, since it pays the lowest hourly rate of all groups that use park district fields and uses them most frequently. For example, compared to the 678 hours a year that youth soccer uses the turf field, Forest Park Middle School pays $20 an hour for 74 hours a year.
“We can’t charge our own in-district school district more than we charge youth soccer,” Iovinelli told the Review. “It’s an incredible imbalance. It’s hard to swallow. It’s hard for us to do. Everybody has to pay to play, unfortunately.”
But dozens of residents who attended the March 19 board meeting said the increased cost came with no warning and wanted to know what had happened behind-the-scenes.
Forest Park resident Hannah Dallmann, whose son plays in the youth soccer association and is a coach in the league, said during public comment that the fee hike “came with no warning, and after most families had already registered and paid for the spring season.” She added, “When did the board vote to authorize this change? And if you didn’t, this is exactly why people are showing up. This is exactly why trust is strained. And this is exactly why process matters.”
“It feels sudden, arbitrary, major and retaliatory to me,” said resident Cameron Watkins, whose son also plays in youth soccer, on March 19. “Attending the last several meetings, I’ve been struck by the lack of transparency and resistance to what the community has to say.”
Resident Samantha Abernethy said she left the February park board meeting satisfied with the conversation residents and the park board had about updates to the main playground and turf field.
“I left here feeling really good, which is why I was so surprised to find out that, as soon as public commenters walked out the door, the conversation flipped to increasing fees on the programs of children,” Abernethy said. “I think if you need to raise field fees, you should start with your adult leagues.”
Betty Alzamora, a first-time park board commissioner, said at the March meeting that she was “distressed” by the minutes from the last meeting, which didn’t reflect the conversation the board had about raising the youth soccer group’s hourly rental fee after many of the residents who attended the meeting left after the public comment period.
Meeting minutes often outline what the park board put to a vote, and Iovinelli said the change in field rental rates isn’t an official policy that requires a board vote. She added that the park district has been publicly talking about increasing facility rental fees across the board since 2022, when the youth soccer group pushed back against paying $4 an hour.
Iovinelli said the park district’s facility coordinator communicates with groups, including youth soccer, at the start of every year about annual fees, after organizations submit an outline of initial schedules. She added that the park district has tried to collaborate with youth soccer to consolidate field use, identify other spaces to practice and how to help with expenses, but has received no response.
Mike Hill, president and schedule coordinator of the youth soccer group, did not return a request for comment.
According to Iovinelli, the park district historically pays over $50,000 a year on repairs for the turf field, and the new field is estimated to cost $750,000. She added that, before 2022, youth soccer didn’t pay to use the field. Since then, the park district has received $9,000 from the organization. The change from $4 an hour to $25 will bring the park district $14,238 more a year.
“There’s a reason we have outstanding facilities. It’s because we have to continue to invest in them. Unfortunately, tax dollars are not nearly enough,” Iovinelli said at the March meeting. She told the Review that the park district has been increasingly working toward becoming financially stable in recent years. “We have aging facilities. We want to continue to grow our programs and our services and everything. But we have to make sure that we are looking at the whole picture and making sure that we’re not putting ourselves in a position to not be able to afford to repair the pool or replace the soccer field.”
Also at the March meeting, Iovinelli said the board aims to have a field use policy for the 2027 season. While fees could increase for other organizations using park facilities, cost will be informed by the number of tax-paying Forest Park residents who are in a league or group. The rental fee for youth soccer is expected to increase to $50 an hour in 2027 but will be voted on by the park board with the official field use policy.
“The big thing that we’ve taken away from these board meetings is we’re not offering enough different variety,” Iovinelli told the Review. “Right now, we can’t bring anybody else in because the field is being used by youth soccer. Let’s get some diversity with our sports so that every kid and every adult has an opportunity to play a variety of sports. That’s what a park district should be.”
Public comment
Residents who spoke at public comment at the March board meeting emphasized the importance of the youth soccer group in the community and are worried the increased rental rate would trickle down to them. Some asked the board for special treatment for an organization with such strong ties to Forest Park.
“When we talk about FPYSA, we’re not talking about just another entity or affiliate. This is a 45-year, volunteer-run, community league, where more than 90% of the kids are Forest Park residents. It exists because families here have built it, supported it, and shown up for it over generations,” Dallmann said. “If these kinds of fee increases happen, families will leave because it will be more affordable for our kids to go play as nonresidents in neighboring towns than to play here, in our own community, on our own tax-funded field.”
According to one public commenter, with the rental fee hike, annual youth soccer costs are expected to double for families.
“The proposed fee increase will ultimately get passed down to families and taxpaying Forest Park residents who are already contributing to the upkeep of these facilities,” said resident DuShaun Branch via an emailed public comment.
“We do pay taxes. I think everyone in this room knows we don’t have No. 1 schools in the area, but we do have a great park out here,” said Matt Jacknow during public comment at the March meeting. “I think you need to think really hard about how many people you’re forcing out with these rate hikes.”
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