New Oswegoland Park District executive director outlines goals

On a recent community survey asking those served by the Oswegoland Park District what they liked most about the district, the district’s programs as well as its parks earned high marks.

As the Oswegoland Park District’s new executive director, Tom Betsinger wants to continue to hear from the public about what the district offers and how it can improve.

“We’re looking to reach out, see how we can help and let them know what we can do,” he said. “We want to make the community a stronger place for everyone to live in.”

Rich Zielke, who previously held the position, is retiring from district on Dec. 29 after 17 years with the district and 30 years in the parks and recreation field.

Betsinger, 48, started with the Oswegoland Park District in 1997 as a recreation supervisor overseeing athletics and special events. He was promoted to the position of recreation superintendent in 2008 and recreation director in 2018.

He started in his new role on Dec. 4. Betsinger, who was selected from a pool of 51 applicants across six states, started with the district right out of college.

“As this community has grown up and evolved, my professional development has also continued to grow,” Betsinger said. “So over the years, I’ve just continued to step into a little bit larger role. And with the previous director retiring, it just made sense for me in my next next step in my career.”

Oswegoland Park Board President Dave Behrens said his experience serves him well.

“Tom’s wealth of experience, dedication, and deep community roots make him the ideal candidate to guide our organization,” he said.

He will be overseeing a number of projects for the Park District, including one to raze the Prairie Point Center administrative building at 313 E. Washington St.

“We’re going to make our administration center a little bit smaller and we’re going to upsize our operations facility that services all of our 66 parks and playgrounds and the 1,200 acres of natural area,” Betsinger said. “A little bit larger operations center helps our fleet, our trucks and our guys who are out servicing the parks and the playgrounds and the trails.”

The Prairie Point Center administrative building was built in the 1970s as a John Deere implement dealership, he said. The Park District has owned it since the mid-’80s, he said.

“We looked at if we could rehab and refresh it, and once you get through all of bringing this building up to code, it is more cost effective to knock it down and build a smaller, more efficient administrative center on the same site,” Betsinger said. “So that’s the path the board has chosen to take us down and we’re pretty excited about it.”

In addition, the Park District is planning smaller renovation projects, including at the Park District’s Civic Center. Non-referendum general obligation bonds and existing capital funds will be funding the various projects.

Playgrounds also will be improved at various parks, including Hudson Crossing Park and Bluegrass Park. Earlier this year, the Oswegoland Park District received a $600,00 state grant to make improvements to the 71-acre Farmington Lakes Park.

Plans for the $600,000 matching grant include expanding access and amenities to the lake, a proposed boardwalk system with a floating dock and kayak/canoe launch, pedestrian access over the Waubonsie Creek, a parking lot, a bike repair station, new aquatic plants, shoreline plants and outcroppings to help existing erosion and algae issues and extending the asphalt bike path to create a full loop around the lake.

“That will be a real exciting project, to make that more accessible for canoes, kayaks and fishermen and be able to really activate that resource, because it is a beautiful body of water. It’s a really lovely natural park,” Betsinger said.

He also wants to reach out to the leaders of other local government bodies.

“One of my goals is to be able to reach out, make those connections and just see how we strengthen the bonds between the different governmental agencies,” Betsinger said.

The Park District serves a population of more than 61,000.

“We really reach out into a whole bunch of different areas, not just Oswego proper,” he said.

That includes surrounding communities like Montgomery, Yorkville, Plainfield and Aurora.

Betsinger is proud of the relationship the Oswegoland Park District has with the community.

“We have staff who also teach or coach in the school district,” he said. “I’ve had kids that were high school students that worked for me in the very beginning who are now adults in the community who volunteer and whose kids are now starting to become employed by the Oswegoland Park District. So really it’s that community connection.”