Downers Grove Park District Celebrates Grand Re-Opening of McCollum Park

Downers Grove Park District officials celebrated the grand re-opening of McCollum Park last week with a ribbon cutting and dedication ceremony.

The park, located at 6801 Main St., underwent $3.9 million in renovations this year as part of an infrastructure upgrade. Construction began in August 2011 and was completed this July.

The improvements include ball field backstops and fencing, spectator seating, a restroom-concession building, picnic pavilion, sports field lighting, sports field irrigation, pedestrian plaza improvements and expansion to the south parking lot.

Many of the upgrades made McCollum more energy efficient, according to Paul Fyle, landscape architect for the Downers Grove Park District.

"Because our irrigation and light systems were older, some of the technologies were out of date," Fyle said. "The new irrigation system has more efficiencies built in, and the new lighting system has 25-percent fewer light poles, resulting in less energy usage."

On Wednesday, Sept. 19, park officials hosted a grand re-opening of the park to highlight the significant improvements made since last year. The event was attended by representatives from several Downers Grove sports organizations, including Downers Grove Youth Baseball, DOLLS Softball, Panther Football and Cheer, and Roadrunners Soccer Club.

After the ribbon-cutting ceremony, guests toured the park and enjoyed light snacks and sports-themed promotional items provided by the park district.

The park district was able to complete the McCollum Park project with the help of Build America Bonds and a $400,000 grant from the State of Illinois Department of Natural Resources, according to park officials.

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