Winnetka residents have until Nov. 2 to weigh in on the future of one of the village's busiest recreational campuses.

The Winnetka Park District posted seven visioning concepts for the Skokie Playfield Campus on its project website, along with a questionnaire asking residents which direction they prefer. The campus, located off Willow and Hibbard roads, includes Duke Childs Field, the A.C. Nielsen Tennis Center, the Winnetka Ice Arena and the district's administrative offices.

The concepts emerged from a master plan process led by consulting firm The Lakota Group. Morgan Chapman, a Lakota Group representative, presented early findings to the Park Board on Aug. 27, The Record North Shore reported. An online survey drew 135 written responses. The data, Chapman said, "reinforced strong support for improved ice facilities, added aquatic and food and beverage amenities."

Demand for the campus is already high. During the spring and fall 2025 seasons, 396 of 420 available programming slots were filled, a 94% occupancy rate.

Parking emerged as a top concern. Chapman told the board that peak-period parking demand spills into adjacent streets and nearby lots, and that school pickups and program drop-offs create recurring bottlenecks.

The big split: pool or no pool?

The seven designs share some common ground. Every concept reorganizes parking and circulation and removes one baseball field. Most expand or relocate the ice facility. Where they diverge is on aquatics.

Three concepts include no pool. Concept 1 focuses on a two-sheet ice expansion and a new golf and paddle clubhouse as a central food and beverage hub. Concept 5 uses structured parking to free space for expanded tennis and pickleball courts. Concept 7 consolidates major buildings toward the center of campus and creates larger open recreation areas.

Four concepts add water. Concept 2 includes a modest pool in the former Pony field area. Concept 3 features a larger pool and reshapes the golf course, reducing the Par 3 from nine holes to five. Concept 4 creates a multi-purpose aquatics facility with recreation, lap, diving and water-play pools. Concept 6 proposes an indoor pool for year-round swimming.

The pool question has lingered in Winnetka for years. The Winnetka Caucus Council's 2026 platform stated that "the WPD should continue to investigate building a pool," according to The Record North Shore, while acknowledging residents were split on whether they would use one.

Floodplain adds complexity

Any redesign will have to account for a significant constraint: the campus sits almost entirely within the FEMA Zone A floodplain. Chapman noted at the Aug. 27 meeting that future development would need to incorporate detention, storage and floodproofing measures. The Forest Preserve District of Cook County, which owns adjacent property, has indicated it is open to discussing flood mitigation collaboration with the park district, according to The Record North Shore.

The district held an in-person visioning workshop on Sept. 30. The online materials and questionnaire are available at skokieplayfieldmasterplan.com for residents who could not attend. The questionnaire closes Nov. 2.