Since the Park District was established, it has been fortunate to enlist the dedication and expertise of numerous volunteers. At the center of this volunteer effort are the Park Commissioners. Residents of the Park District elect a non-partisan, five-member Board of Park Commissioners to govern the District. The Park Board determines the priorities and defines policies for financing, governance, operation and administration of the Park District. Board members are elected to serve unsalaried, overlapping four-year terms.
BOARD MEMBERS
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Bob Kotula | Sandra McDonnell | Jon Dahlstrom | Bret Bender | Craig Lundt |
Bob Kotula - President
Sandra McDonnell - Vice President
Jon Dahlstrom - Treasurer
Bret Bender - Secretary
Craig Lundt - Commissioner
To email a Board Member directly, please click on their name above.
Municipal Directory
Board Meetings
Workshop meetings take place during the first week of the month and Regular Meetings will take place during the third or fourth week of the month. All meetings are conducted at the Recreation Center Multi-purpose Room, 4500 Belmont Road, Downers Grove, IL. All meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. (unless otherwise noted) and the general public is invited to attend.
2025 meeting calendar
board meeting PORTALĀ
New Board Meeting Portal!
The Downers Grove Park District has introduced a new system for accessing Board Meeting dates, minutes, agendas, recordings, and documents. This upgrade is designed to enhance efficiency and transparency, providing the community with an intuitive platform to locate board-related information. We appreciate your patience as we transition board documents from 2023-2024 into the new system. For assistance with locating past documents, please contact Adine Wrzesinski, Executive Assistant and FOIA Officer, at awrzesinski@dgparks.org.
Newly Released Executive Session Minutes
- All Meetings of the Park District are open to the public. Meetings are generally held the first and third Thursday of each month, beginning at 7:00 PM, at the Recreation Center Multi-Purpose Room. Meeting dates and times do change, so please call the Park District office at 630.963.1304 to verify the meeting schedule or view the schedule below.
- Regular Meetings are formal sessions of the Downers Grove Park District Board of Commissioners. The Park Board President is the presiding officer. Roberts Rules of Order related to parliamentary process are generally utilized.
- Public comments regarding any Park District business are welcome under the Visitors sections of the Agenda. At the appropriate time, the President will ask if there are any comments or questions from the visitors. If you wish to speak, simply raise your hand to be recognized. After acknowledgment from the President, please stand and state your name and address before proceeding with your question or comment. (If a microphone has been set up, please approach the microphone.) Comments should be addressed to the Board and not to the audience. If you wish to talk with another member of the audience, please leave the room.
- Please limit your remarks to five minutes, if possible. Please do not ask a question for which you need an immediate response or attempt to enter into a debate. After public comment, an elected official may or may not respond to your question. Questions are often answered immediately in subsequent discussions during or after the meeting, or at a later date.
The Park District Board and Staff appreciate your attendance and participation!
YEARS OF SERVICE | NAME |
1946 - 1962 | Otto Hummer |
1946 | P. S. Rinaldo |
1946 | William Bradford Winer |
1947 - 1949 | David W. Russell |
1949 - 1952 | Victor A. Galbraith |
1950 - 1952 | Phillips W. Goodell |
1952 - 1955 | Alfred A. Moore |
1954 - 1958 | Bartle R. Herrick |
1954 - 1957 | Raulin B. Wight, Jr. |
1954 - 1957 | E. Russell Bradley |
1954 - 1955 | Ernest A. Jensen |
1955 | Helen E. Stormer |
1957 - 1962 | Richard K. Kucera |
1957 - 1969 | Edward J. Doerhoefer |
1958 - 1962 | Schoenberg |
1959 - 1963 | Keeley |
1960 | Leonard Batemen (Retired) |
1960 | Frances Wander (Secretary) |
1961 - 1976 | T. W. McCollum |
1962 - 1965 | William Perkins |
1963 - 2001 | William Sherman, Jr. |
1963 - 1974 | Don Whitlock |
1965 - 1973 | Robert O'Brien |
1966 - 1970 | William Eichstedt |
1969 | Wander (Clerk) |
1969 - 1971 | JoAnne L. Baker |
1970 - 1991 | Linda Wander (Clerk/Commissioner) |
1970 - 1971 | Michael Musko |
1971 - 1975 | William Dietz |
1972 | Larry Wyllie |
1972 | John Woodson |
1975 - 1985 | Jan Kopis |
1975 - 1978 | Ray Kozak |
1975 - 1989 | Ruth Powers |
1985 - 1993 | Walt Sandine |
1987 - 2004 | Susan Dunlap |
1989 - 1993 | Paul Simmons |
1991 - 1997 | Mary Anne Bokholdt |
1994 - 2005 | Mary Thomson |
1994 - 2001 | Jerry Yoksoulian |
1997 - 2003 | Carol Doty |
2001 - 2007 | Janis Sleeter |
2001 - 2007 | Mike Salazar |
2003 - 2009 | Art Jaros |
2004 - 2019 | Robert Gelwicks |
2005 - 2023 | Catherine Mahoney |
2007 - 2009 | Kathryn Engel-Accettura |
2007 - 2009 | Ron Smith |
2009 - 2013 | Janet Barr |
2009 - 2011 | Fred Gusel |
2010 - 2017 | Matt Cushing |
2011 - 2015 | Mark Roman |
2013 - 2015 | Damienne Souter |
2015 - 2019 | Frank Livorsi |
2015 - 2019 | Tom Salaba |
2019 - 2020 | Lizz Hellinga |
2017 - Present | Sandra McDonnell |
2019 - Present | Jon Dahlstrom |
2019 - Present | Bob Kotula |
2021 - Present | Bret Bender |
2023 - Present | Craig Lundt |