Goal

A parks and recreation system that promotes healthy lifestyles by offering active and passive recreational opportunities for residents, employees, and visitors, and enhances the overall image and character of the community.

Of the workshop attendees on April 26, 2003, 92.5% agreed or strongly agreed with this goal statement.

Objectives

Listed in order of urgency for implementation:

• Create the means and mechanisms to own, manage and maintain parks and recreation opportunities.
• Cooperate with citizens, community groups, and various levels of government to develop a comprehensive parks, open space and recreation plan that reflects goals and objectives from the Green Community process. This process should respect land differences for appropriate uses.
• Develop design guidelines for development of community proposal that encourages trails development and offer recreation amenities for employees.
• Develop a variety of active and passive recreation opportunities for all, including special needs, such as neighborhoods, community parks, trails and open spaces that link to and complement the regional open space, parks, and recreation facilities in the Homer Glen area.
• Develop a multi-use parks, commons, and recreation center as part of a new Town Center to create a central gathering place and activity area.
• Develop a network of multi-us trails and pathways to provide connections between subdivisions, schools, parks, and commercial areas.
• Identify creative funding mechanisms in order to achieve and implement park, open space, and recreation objectives.

Transportation

Goal

A coordinated, sustainable system of roadways, pedestrian facilities, recreational pathways and public transportation services that provides for the safe and efficient movement of vehicles and pedestrians and enhances the countryside character and environmental amenities of the Village.

Of the workshop attendees on April 26, 2003,89.7% agreed or strongly agreed with this goal statement.

Objectives

Listed in order of urgency for implementation:

• Promote the Homer Glen vision by requiring naturally landscaped, wide roadways and corridors - for example, requiring 80-foot minimum right-of-way in new residential developments - and consider these features integral to the transportation plan.
• Develop a comprehensive network of multi-use trails and greenways to link residential subdivisions with schools, parks, shopping areas, public facilities, open spaces, forest preserves and other multi-use trails in the area.
• Develop an integrated transportation and land-use plan for the Village that identifies an efficient pattern of land-use and transportation-system design that minimizes congestion and through-traffic on roads under Village jurisdiction.
• Incorporate an assessment of the impact of regional transportation plans (for example, I-355, Caton Farms Road/Bruce Road/Strategic Regional Arterial plan) into the integrated transportation and land-use plan.
• Improve transportation safety on existing roadways by evaluating the need for guard rails, street lighting, roadway profiles and other approaches.
• Work with state and county transportation agencies to achieve these objectives along state and county routes into, out of and through the Village.

Water Resources

Goal

Plentiful, high quality surface and groundwater resources that protect the quality of life for residents and all ecosystems, especially wetlands, by reducing the impacts on these systems.

Of the workshop attendees on April 26, 2003, 92.3% agreed or strongly agreed with this goal statement.

Objectives

Listed in order of urgency for implementation:

• Gather and assess data needed to protect key water resource areas and to develop growth strategies. Data to be collected includes, but is not limited to the following:
  • Hydrology and hydraulic studies
  • Soil analysis
  • Historic surveys
  • Longitudinal profiles
  • Vegetation
  • Stormwater run-off
  • Floodplains, wetlands, etc. This data will help to determine carrying capacity.
• To have an education program that:
  • Educates elected officials to provide authority and resources.
  • Educates stakeholders (e.g., residents, landowners, business owners, developers) as to how land-use affects water resources and to promote low impact development and green development.
  • Educates the educators, establishes environmental education in schools, develops interpretive signage for natural resource features and drainage, and establishes a Watershed Watch Program and voluntary monitoring.
  • Develop and enforce ordinances that support water resource objectives and goals.
  • Tie in land use study with development of comprehensive plan.
  • Utilize design solutions that reduce impervious surfaces, bring water and stormwater to public attention, and increase use of native landscaping.